Legacy of Darkness: Genesis
by Above the Winter Moonlight
Summary: It's Jaden and Xander Yuki's first year at Duel Academy; a year that will not be easy. Friends and rivals will be made, hidden enemies and shocking truths will be revealed and the Yuki twins and their new friends will get entangled in a fight that puts more than just their lives on the line. 1st season AU, no longer accepting OCs, Ch. 8 posted, reviews appreciated
1. Prologue

_This idea actually came to me while I was editing the third chapter of _Spirit Bonds_ and I decided to type it up. I will continue _Spirit Bonds _though_. _I only have one OC for this story, so far, who will be using the same deck I created for the second OC in _Spirit Bonds, _which hasn't made an appearance yet—actually, I think it's more likely to make an appearance in this story first as I am unsure of how to proceed for the other one. Anyway, I am also looking for anyone willing to submit at least two OCs, possibly three, for this story as I really don't have the time to create another OC when I'm already working on fleshing out three at the moment. If you want to then read the note I have at the end of this chapter. On another note, I'm practicing my poetry skills in the first part of the prelude. Hope I do a good job. Otherwise, enjoy! Reviews, as always, are much appreciated!_

_**Disclaimer: **__I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, I never have and I never will. I am only saying this once so I will not repeat it in later chapters._

**Legacy of Darkness: Genesis**

**Prelude**

_Gentle Darkness and destructive Light,_

_Champions for both sides_

_Will clash in a battle of might._

Two guardians stand on either side,

Of the one who vies

To repair the great divide.

_One guardian shall disappear into the ether_

_Of the destructive Light's lies_

_Leaving one as both protector and defender._

Riders of shadow, followers of Light;

Band of hidden enemies,

And band of allies, ready to fight.

_Storms brew quietly in the near_

_Future putting all lives_

_On the line. Threats made to unleash fear_

Into a world of ignorance and pride

And captivating lies

As Light seeks to turn the tide.

_Steadfast, strong, the champion of dark will stand_

_Surrounded by truths and lies_

_With love and hate as abundant as grains of sand._

A struggle between Light and Darkness

Will occur as either champion vies

To be the one to stand victorious.

**. . .**

The armored figure stood in silence gazing out over the land, his visored helmet hiding the worried expression on his face as his thoughts drifted primarily to what he had just been told. All that he had tried to achieve in keeping the twelve dimensions safe from the Light was about to be all for naught unless he figured out a way to stop a war that would cost him more than just the stability of the twelve dimensions.

And yet he had just been informed that there was no way of stopping the coming war; it could—and would—only be delayed.

Resting a gauntlet covered hand to his helmeted face and closing his eyes, the Supreme King let out a long sigh.

"What's on your mind?"

He turned to find his two closest and most loyal allies—who had become his family—walking over to join him. His ally and brother Dar'ekel—Dar to him—observed him though the helmet prevented him from seeing the King's expression as he waited for his response.

"The words of the prophet," the King replied. While his voice might sound harsh and cold to others, Dar knew him well enough to see beyond the harsh exterior the King exuded.

"You believe those words?" The King's other ally and sister—Yubel—asked looking concerned. "They sound like the ramblings of a drunkard."

"Yes and yet I am sure he was telling the truth. I do not know how to explain how I know…it's just a feeling. Something is telling me that I need to take the prophet's words seriously," the King said.

"If the Light really is preparing to strike again then what do you plan on doing?" Dar asked.

"There is little I can do. I barely survived my last encounter with the last champion in that other dimension and I fear it may be getting more powerful," the King said. "Besides, the prophet stated that the Light will not strike for some time."

"That makes no sense. Why would he warn us about something that may not happen in our time?" Yubel asked.

The King turned around to gaze back at the land stretching out before him where his subjects were going about their daily activities oblivious to the problems their lord was facing. "He said the Light's strike will be delayed," he said.

"Delayed? How?"

"He did not say." The King paused thinking over what the prophet had told him after Yubel and Dar left before he turned around to face his brother and sister deciding to seek their advice on the other matter the prophet brought up with him. "He did say that he saw a child being in the middle of everything."

"A child?" Yubel repeated.

"Yes, he said that this child will be chosen to succeed me as wielder of the Gentle Darkness."

There was silence for a long moment as Yubel and Dar digested the new information the King gave them. Finally, Yubel spoke. "Who is this child?"

"The prophet did not say; all he said was that this child and I will be one, which tells me that not only will I be reincarnated but the Light's strike will _not_ be in our time," the King said.

"This is not good," Dar said worriedly. "I do not doubt your ability to control the Darkness but a _child?_ The only reason you had _any_ control over the power as a child was because of Yubel and I and even then that control was not as strong as it is now."

"If the Gentle Darkness remains locked away in this child until he or she enters adulthood then I will be able to help him or her control it. If it is awakened early as it was with me in this life then I am unsure," the King said.

"With no control over it then this child could end up causing the very thing we are trying to prevent," Yubel said.

"I know," the King said. "However, I may have a solution. Just as I had two guardians when the power was awakened within me, I believe this child should have at least one guardian as well, two preferably."

"I will guard this child," Yubel declared immediately though the King had not suggested that.

"As will I," Dar agreed in an instant.

The King smiled at his family—he had expected them to react that way. They were his family and if he was going to be reincarnated then, naturally, his family would want to be with him when it happened—though no one could see it. "We will need to figure out how to do this though," he said. "Perhaps we should speak to the prophet again."

"He did not seem to be of much help the last time you spoke to him," Yubel said coolly.

"The prophet cannot always help, Yubel," Dar said.

"So why should we waste our time speaking to someone who may not be able to help us anyway?"

"Because we do not have another choice," the King said before, without another word, leading the way out of the chamber.

**. . .**

"My king," the blind prophet greeted the King, Yubel and Dar as they made their way into his study. He got to his feet before bowing to the King who was not surprised the prophet knew it was him. The blind prophet always knew whoever or whatever was entering his chambers at all times; it was one of his powers. His other power was that his visions almost always were futures that dealt primarily with the King and spanned all twelve dimensions.

"You seek answers on what to do to stop the destruction of the twelve dimensions that may happen," the blind prophet said gesturing to one of the armchairs situated around him. The King took a seat while Dar hovered to his right hand resting on the sword strapped to his belt—_as paranoid as ever,_ the King thought ruefully—and Yubel took a seat in the armchair next to the King.

"You have already decided that the child I told you about should have, preferably, two guardians," the prophet added. He was simply stating what everyone already knew.

Yubel looked impatient. "We know all of this, blind-one!" She snapped her teal-colored eyes flashing. "Are you going to help us or are you going to prove yourself useless again?"

"Yubel," the King said warningly.

Yubel, taking a deep breath to push down her irritation, sat back down.

"I shall help you, my king," the prophet said. "I have seen that the two who were your guardians shall also be the guardians of the child I spoke to you about. However, it will be different depending on the time and dimension in which all of this shall come to pass."

"What do you mean?" Dar asked.

"I cannot discern the exact point in time or the dimension in which all of this will occur," the prophet explained. "Times are changing, my king, as are dimensions. There is no telling how different from this dimension another dimension will be in the future. That being said, both guardians will have to adjust to the time and the dimension. I think it would be best if this child has both a physical guardian and a spiritual guardian."

"Spiritual? As in a duel monster spirit guardian?" Yubel asked.

"Yes."

The King was silent for a long moment unsure of what to think about the prophet's suggestion. He was basically suggesting that either Yubel or Dar—who had already agreed to be the guardians—be transformed into a monster spirit, which would both be permanent and destroy their humanity. To ask his brother or his sister to do that for him was too much.

"I will do it," Yubel said suddenly causing the King to look toward her surprised.

"Yubel, you know what…" he began.

"I know what will happen and I know that I will be giving up my humanity and that it cannot be reversed but I will protect you. Dar is, by far, the better choice in being your physical guardian; his duel spirit is not as strong as mine and that means the ritual may not work with him," Yubel said.

"But we do not know if the ritual will work for you either, Yubel," Dar said a look of concern on his face.

"It is more likely to work with me than it would with you, Dar," Yubel said. "I have made my decision. I will be the spiritual guardian."

The King placed a hand on Yubel's arm. "If you are truly willing…" he began.

"I am," the young woman interrupted.

"…then I will honor your request. I do not like this though, Yubel, but you have made your decision and I doubt I can unmake it for you."

Yubel placed her hand on top of the King's. "This way, I will always be with you," she said.

Dar moved forward and placed a hand on the King's shoulder. "We are your family," he said. "And nothing will ever change that; nothing will separate us or sever that bond between us." He looked toward the prophet. "What about me? If I am the physical guardian then what must I do?"

"Nothing," the prophet said. "In every future that I saw, no matter which dimension it took place in, you were already there as His Majesty's physical guardian. Yubel made the same decision for the same reason in every future I saw. Just as His Majesty will be reincarnated, Dar'ekel, so shall you."

"But as what?"

"Depends on towards which future and in which dimension all this occurs but, considering the bond between the three of you, I do not doubt you will be reincarnated as a member of whichever family His Majesty is reincarnated into."

"What of me?" Yubel asked.

"That is unclear. In every vision about this matter that I had, you were reunited with His Majesty and Dar in a different way."

"Do you still wish to do this, Yubel?" the King asked.

Yubel squeezed the King's arm. "Yes," she said firmly.

"Very well." The King looked at both Yubel and Dar before adding, "However, no matter what happens. You two will _always_ be my family and I will never stop loving you, not now, not ever."

Yubel's eyes softened. "I love you too, brother, now and forever," she said gently.

"As do I, brother, now and forever," Dar agreed.

**. . .**

**A/n what do you think?**

**Blaze: and that was the prologue of my brand-new **_**Yu-Gi-Oh! GX**_** story**

**Darth: I rather liked it but it left it open?**

**Blaze: the rest of what happened will be covered during the course of the story, more likely when—if—I do seasons 2 and 3**

**Darth: will you be doing season 4?**

**Blaze: why bother? I've never seen it because **_**someone**_** didn't dub it!**

**Darth: you're upset about that, I see**

**Blaze: of course. I was actually looking forward to seeing Jaden and Yubel together without them being enemies and I only saw that in the **_**Bonds Beyond Time**_** movie**

**Darth: oh so are you going to be starting season 1? Will all three seasons be in one story? Are you going to have any more OCs? What are the pairings?**

**Blaze: in order, yes, I'm not sure yet, I will come back to that in a moment and, as of right now, no pairings though it may end up being J/A and OC/OC**

**Darth: oh okay**

**Blaze: and back to the OCs. As I said at the beginning, I'm looking for two OCs to include in my story. for right now (maybe a third one later). Gender doesn't matter though I'd like one to be a girl just because there are so few female main characters in season 1. If anyone is interested, please say so in a review and I will PM you with the information that I need**

**Darth: cool so, so far, you only have one OC right?**

**Blaze: yeah, Dar who will be reincarnated as Xander Yuki**

**Darth: Are he and Jaden twins?**

**Blaze: yes but they are born three days apart. I looked it up. It is possible.**

**Darth: interesting. So what will happen in the next chapter?**

**Blaze: the next two chapters are Xander and Jaden shining in their entrance exam duels; each duel will be a separate chapter. Xander's will be first and then Jaden.**

**Darth: ah okay so you finally get to play around with the new deck you created huh?**

**Blaze: heck yeah!**

**Darth: (chuckles)**

**Blaze: so I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of my new story. Please review, as they are much appreciated, and chapter 1 will come as soon as I possibly can **


	2. Chapter One

**Thank you to **_**decode9**_**, **_**IfTimeWasStill**_**, **_**EndlessNight025**_**, **_**Nightshade07**_** and **_**iloveyugiohGX93**_** for reviewing the last chapter (and thanks to the first four who submitted OCs). Currently, as it will say in the summary, I am no longer accepting OCs for this season but if I do seasons 2 and 3 then I may request more. For now, I am sticking with just four OCs (five including my own). Here is chapter 1, the first of the exam duels and introduction of my OC, and I hope you like it. Reviews are much appreciated.**

**Author's Note (April 22, 2014): I have gone through this chapter and, hopefully, I have fixed all the technical mistakes that EndlessNight025 pointed out. From chapter 2 on, EndlessNight025 is going to be my Beta-reader.**

**Chapter One**

Yawning and glaring at both his brother and the blaring alarm clock that his twin brother Jaden—as usual—was sleeping through, Xander Yuki sat up rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Though they were born three days apart, they were twins; doctors told their parents that this sometimes happened and that it was called a delayed interval birth. They looked a lot alike; they were the same height, had almost identical facial features and had the same brown eyes. The only way to tell them apart was their hair color; Jaden's was dark brown with a strip of orange in it while Xander's was black with a strip of barely visible dark red in it.

It was half past eight in the morning and even Xander wasn't too thrilled about waking up this early. He knew he had to though. He didn't want to be late for the second half of their entrance exams—they had done the written test the day before—and sign-in ended in an hour and a half.

_How should I wake him up?_ Xander thought half an hour later after he had gotten ready and eaten a quick breakfast. He observed Jaden who was still fast asleep despite the fact that Xander had left the alarm clock on in the hope that it would wake his twin up; he wasn't too surprised it didn't work.

'_I say ice cold water,_' a bark sounded and Xander glanced to his side as the sand-colored hound appeared. He had a silver star on his back and smaller silver stars around his large liquid brown eyes.

Xander had first learned he could talk and see duel spirits only a week earlier when Maximillian Pegasus, owner of Industrial Illusions, had given him advance copies of the new archetype cards two days before they were released—the cards that Xander himself had designed. After he received the cards, the hound—known as Star Force Sand Hound—had started appearing to him. At first, Xander just thought he was seeing and hearing things but, after the last few days of seeing Sand Hound, hearing his barks and actually _understanding_ what he was saying, he finally just gave up trying to figure out what was happening and just rolled with it. He had told his brother—the twins, though they were born three days apart, shared _everything_—and hadn't been too surprised when Jaden accepted it. Sand Hound wasn't the only duel monster who spoke with him though; it seemed that, occasionally, every one of his monsters would speak to him but, usually, this only occurred during duels.

Xander chuckled. "That's always your solution, Sand," he said out loud.

'_Well, do you wanna be late for the second half of your entrance exams?_' Sand Hound barked.

"True."

At that, Xander left his room and made his way into the kitchen. He wasn't at all surprised to find that his parents weren't there; they were rarely home as it was. He doubted they would even be there to see the twins off to Duel Academy.

Xander harbored a little resentment toward his parents because of this. His parents' constant absence from home had led to him and Jaden practically raising each other. Sure, their parents hired the best nannies money could buy and, every now and then, their aunt would watch over them—though she hated anything to do with duel monsters—but it wasn't the same as having actual parents.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Xander grabbed a large bowl from within the cabinets and filled it with cold water.

'_This is going to be funny,_' Sand Hound barked padding after Xander as he carried the bowl back to the room he shared with his brother. Making sure to remain clear of Jaden—he still remembered the black eye he had gotten when he had been too close to Jaden while waking him up suddenly—Xander tossed the cold water on his brother.

The response was instantaneous.

With a yelp, Jaden jumped out of bed and landed, unceremoniously, on the ground next to his bed taking his pillows, blankets and the alarm clock with him. Lifting his head to glare at the smirking Xander, Jaden growled, "What the heck, Xan?!"

Xander put the bowl on top of his dresser and shrugged. "The entrance exam duels are today, Jay," he said though he knew his brother already knew that.

Jaden yawned as he got to his feet and tossed his wet blankets and pillows onto his bed though not before chucking a pillow at Xander who dodged. "We've got plenty of time to get to the Kaiba Dome, bro," he said rubbing his eyes.

"Jay, they won't accept anyone who doesn't sign in by ten," Xander said. "So get up! We need to get moving."

"Yes mom," Jaden said walking past Xander though the older twin caught his brother's muttered, "How are we twins again?" as he left the bedroom.

About half an hour later, Xander was waiting impatiently by the door to the house glancing toward the grandfather clock that hung in the living room. "Come on, Jay! It's gonna take us twenty minutes just to get to the Kaiba Dome," he shouted into the kitchen where his brother was eating a quick breakfast.

"Can't duel on an empty stomach," Jaden shouted back.

"Not my fault you slept through your alarm again."

Jaden didn't respond to that. A few minutes later, he finished eating and walked over to join his brother. "Okay, I'm ready to go now," he said grabbing his deck and slipping it into the case on his belt.

The twins left their home and began making their way through Domino toward the Kaiba Dome weaving around the pedestrians that mingled on the sidewalks. Both of them were excited at the thought of getting into the prestigious Duel Academy. They had already passed the written portion of the entrance exam the day before—well, Jaden barely passed it. Xander had tried to convince Jaden to study but it was likely talking to a brick wall—now, they simply had to pass the second half; the duels.

Continuing to make their way around pedestrians and dashing across streets in between slow-moving cars, the twins cut through the park now running as they only had ten minutes to sign in. Unfortunately, Jaden, who was currently in the lead, didn't watch where he was going and crashed into someone else sending them both flying to the ground and causing a few of Jaden's cards to pop out of his case.

Xander managed to skid to a stop before he tripped over the two of them. "Hey, are you two okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm so sorry about that though," Jaden said—the last words directed at the person he ran into—getting to his knees as the person he ran into got to his feet. He reached for his cards and slipped them back into his deck while Xander was staring wide-eyed with shock at the person his brother had run into.

_Leave it to Jaden to run into the King of Games,_ he thought.

"You're a duelist?" Yugi Motou asked as Jaden got to his feet.

"Yup!" Jaden said grinning. "So is my brother. We're on our way to finish trying out for the academy."

"Is that so?" Yugi said studying Jaden before he glanced toward his deck case and pulled out a single card. "Then here,"—he held out the card toward Jaden—"I have a feeling this belongs with you."

"Hey thanks," Jaden said taking the card—which was Winged Kuriboh—before his jaw dropped when he realized who he was talking to. "Oh, wow, you're…"

"I think you two should get going. It's almost ten. Good luck, both of you," Yugi interrupted patiently.

Xander glanced at his watch before realizing Yugi was right. "Oh dang it! Thanks! Come on Jay!" He dashed forward, grabbed Jaden's arm and half-dragged half-guided Jaden as he began running.

"Thanks for the card! We'll make you proud!" Jaden shouted after Yugi. Yugi gave him a small smile and a thumbs-up before walking away.

"I can run just fine on my own, Xan," he added later glaring at Xander who smirked as the Kaiba Dome appeared before them.

He let Jaden go as they neared the entrance just in time to see two women and one man talking with each other. "Hey! Is it too late to sign-in?" Xander called jogging over to join the woman. He feared that it was as it had taken them a bit longer to reach the Kaiba Dome after their run in with Yugi.

They exchanged glances before the man shrugged. "You two will be the last. Please sign here," he said before the woman held out the pen. Xander took it before signing his name next to where his name was printed on the sheet—he had to look through it as his and Jaden's were on the last page—before handing the pen to Jaden who also signed his name.

"You two will go after Mr. Misawa as soon as we get a proctor for each of you. Through those doors," one of the women said pointing to the doors.

"Thanks," Jaden said brightly before the twins made their way into the arena.

**. . .**

"A fine batch of new students," Doctor Vellian Crowler said observing the new students and also looking over the duelists who had already been placed; there were quite a few students who were joining the Obelisks—which was the dorm that Crowler was headmaster of—such as Alexis Rhodes and Chazz Princeton, whose duels were rather impressive and who also went to Duel Prep School for the last three years.

Of course, Crowler wasn't counting any of the mediocre duelists, i.e. those who were ranked as Slifers.

He was currently watching the last applicant, Bastion Misawa—a black-haired duelist dressed in a white uniform—as he faced his dueling proctor. He currently had 3200 life points and had a Vorse Raider on the field (A: 1900/D: 1200) as well as a face down card. The dueling proctor had two defense monsters; Gear Golem the Moving Fortress (A: 800/D: 2200) and Big Shield Guardna (A: 100/D: 2600).

"All right, new guy," the dueling proctor said. "Multiple choice; you have two monsters staring you down, do you A. throw in the towel, B. beg for mercy or C. run home to mama?"

"I choose D. none of the above," Bastion said revealing his face down card; Ring of Destruction. "I activate my trap card, Ring of Destruction. You see, with this card, I can destroy a monster in attack mode on the field and both of us receive damage equal to its attack points."

_Not a bad move,_ Crowler thought as Vorse Raider was destroyed and the dueling proctor's life points went down to zero while Bastion's went down to 1300.

"A clever move, welcome to the Academy," the proctor said.

Bastion bowed. "Thank you, oh wise proctor."

**. . .**

In the stands, watching the duel, Chazz Princeton—a boy in a blue blazer with spiky black hair and black eyes—heard one of his friend's—Akio—say, "Wow. That guys pretty good, huh?"

"Guess the rumors about him being some sort of whiz kid were true, huh, Chazz?" another friend—Saku—said.

"He's a punk," Chazz said shortly. "We went to Duel Prep School for the past three years. We're ready for the Academy. These kids don't know what they're getting into. But they'll learn…the hard way, the _Chazz Princeton _way."

**. . .**

Above the stands, a tall girl with long blonde hair in a white top with blue trim, blue skirt and dark blue boots stood next to a tall dark-blue haired boy in a long white blazer with blue trim. They were Alexis Rhodes and Zane Truesdale, the latter of whom was the current top student at Duel Academy.

"That was a good duel. There look to be a few good duelists this year," Alexis said looking to Zane who nodded but otherwise remained silent.

**. . .**

"Wow, that guy really tore it up," Jaden, having caught the last of the duel, said.

"It was rather impressive," Xander said standing on Jaden's other side.

The blue-haired boy whom they had stopped beside glanced toward the twins. "Yeah, Bastion Misawa; they said he got a perfect score on his written exams out of all of us new applicants."

"Wow, really? I barely made it through mine," Jaden said. "My nerdy brother got a near perfect score though."

Xander punched Jaden in the shoulder. "Who're you calling 'nerdy'?" he snapped.

"You," Jaden said rubbing his shoulder.

The blue-haired boy smiled a little. "I barely made it through mine too. I kinda have a thing where I get test anxiety. I don't know how I won my duel. I'm Syrus by the way."

"I'm Xander and this is my baby bro Jaden," Xander said.

Jaden glared at him. "Three days, bro," he said before he looked at Syrus and slapped him on the back. "But that means you're in, doesn't it? Congratulations. Xan and I'll be in too once we have our duels."

"You haven't dueled yet?" Syrus echoed looking surprised.

"Nope. The person we signed in with said that we'd be the last," Xander said.

"Oh but I thought that Bastion's duel was gonna be the last one," Syrus said looking a little confused.

"Guess no one got the memo about us," Jaden said with a shrug.

** . . .**

_If he had gone to Duel Prep School, he might've made it into my dorm,_ Crowler thought as the duel ended.

"Excuse me, Mister?" one of the people in charge of the signing-in outside the Kaiba Dome said as he came to Crowler's side.

"Did you just call me _Mister_?" Crowler demanded.

"I'm sorry, I'm new here, Ms."

"I happen to have a PhD in dueling so it's Doctor," Crowler snapped. "Now what is it?"

"We have two last minute applicants," the man said. "They signed in only a few minutes after ten so we decided to come and ask you if they could still take the second half of their exams."

"Well, you can just tell those truants to come back next year," Crowler snapped.

"Ah come on, Crowler, we've got time for two more duels," one teacher seated behind Crowler said. "They were only a few minutes late."

"Yeah," another teacher said seated beside Crowler said. "Give 'em a chance."

Crowler ground his teeth together but he had to admit that being a few minutes late wasn't as bad as it could be. Still, he did not like the idea of letting in anymore slackers as he was sure these late arrivals were slackers. Why else would they be late? "Late is rude," he snapped and was about to say more on the matter but was interrupted when his phone rang. Reaching into his pocket, he answered the call.

"Hello, who may I ask is…?" he began.

"_Crowler, it's Sheppard,_" the sound of Chancellor Sheppard's voice sounded at the other end.

"Oh Chancellor Sheppard, how nice of you too call," Crowler said.

"_I wanted to call to make sure everything is running smoothly. We wouldn't want a repeat of last year, when you cut a third of the applicants because they called you 'mister' or 'missus'. Just make sure everyone gets their fair shot._"

Crowler's teeth ground together again. "Of course, Chancellor," he said before he ended the call and stood up. "If you'll excuse me, I will be right back."

"But who will be the boys' dueling proctor and which examination deck will be used?" one teacher asked.

"Leave that to me," Crowler said with a smirk. He'd take both of them out himself if he had to. A few minutes late or an hour late, it didn't matter; all it served was to prove that they were slackers and that was one thing Crowler would not tolerate.

**. . .**

"Hey Bastion, tight duel!" Jaden was saying as Bastion sat down in front of them.

"Thank you," Bastion said politely.

"From the looks of things, you could be the third best duelist here," Jaden said.

"_Xander Yuki, please report to exam field four, Xander Yuki to exam field four,_" a voice over the intercom said.

"Well, guess I'm up first," Xander said before he began making his way down the stairs.

"What did you mean that I would be the _third_ best duelist here? Who are the first and second?" Bastion asked.

"Why yours truly and my brother, in that order," Jaden said.

"Who says you'll be number one, Jay?" Xander called back.

"I do."

"You wish." Without another word, Xander left the stands.

As he made his way into the exam field, he noticed the dueling proctor was a tall, blonde person dressed in a blue blazer with gold shoulder plates and trimming and make-up on his face. At first glance, Xander thought he was looking at a clown and wondered why he was dueling one but figured it was the proctor so said nothing on the matter.

"All right, test time. So, what is your name, son?" the proctor asked.

"Xander Yuki, sir," Xander replied politely.

"Well, Xander Yuki, I am Doctor Vellian Crowler, Department Chair and Techniques Professor here at Duel Academy," the proctor said.

"Department Chair?" Xander repeated. "Huh. Never would've guessed." He shrugged before activating his duel disk while Crowler activated his duel vest.

"Duel!"

**Crowler: 4000**

**Xander: 4000**

"I guess I'll go first," Xander said drawing his sixth card before smiling as, with a _woof_, the duel spirit Sand Hound appeared at his side. "Okay, I'll start off with this. I summon Star Force Sand Hound in defense mode." The sand-colored hound with the star on his back and stars around his eyes appeared on the field sitting on his haunches with a tongue lolling out and liquid brown eyes fixed on Crowler (A: 600/D: 300).

"And then I'll place two cards facedown and that's it," Xander said.

**. . .**

"Star Force what?" Syrus echoed. "I've never heard of that card before!"

"I have," Bastion said. "Star Force is the new archetype that Industrial Illusions created; the cards were just released last week. It is a bit ambitious to use an archetype that was only just released though."

"Eh, don't worry about Xan. He knows those cards better than anyone," Jaden said with a shrug.

"How do you know that?" Syrus asked.

"He was the one that designed 'em."

"He did?" Bastion echoed surprised.

"Uh huh. During a trip to Industrial Illusion Headquarters three months ago, Pegasus saw Xander's designs and decided to make 'em. Xander got the advance copies before they were released to the public," Jaden replied.

"Oh wow," Syrus said.

"If he designed them, I wonder just how well he will play them," Bastion mused.

**. . .**

Chazz frowned. He had heard about the Star Force archetype though he wondered why anyone would use an archetype deck that only came out a week earlier.

"Wow, who in their right mind would use this archetype deck? It just came out a week ago," Akio said surprised echoing Chazz's own thought.

"A foolish move made by a foolish duelist," Chazz said with a sniff. "He won't last long at the academy _if_ he even gets in, which I doubt since he's going up against Dr. Crowler. He's gonna wipe the floor with that loser."

**. . .**

"Pretty ambitious using an archetype that was only released a week ago," Alexis commented looking over at Zane who was observing the duel curiously. "I remember Pegasus announcing the release of these cards last week; wonder what he's thinking using 'em."

Zane simply shrugged. "I suppose we will see if it was an amateur decision or if he really knows what he is doing," he said.

"Yeah."

**. . .**

"You're using Star Force cards?" Crowler repeated looking surprised as he gazed at Sand Hound. "Those were just released a week ago. Such an amateur mistake using an archetype that only became public recently."

"Oh don't count me out just yet, teach," Xander said with a smile. "You're turn by the way."

Crowler's lip twitched. _Oh I will make sure to prove that you _did_ make a mistake in choosing a new archetype for your deck, slacker,_ he thought as he drew his sixth card. _And I will make sure you fail this test and get sent home and, since I'm using my own personal deck, things will be much easier. Once I beat you, that other slacker is next._

"I think I will start out nice and easy and play the spell card Confiscation," he declared holding out the card before placing it in one of his spell and trap card slots.

"This allows me to look at your cards so long as I pay 1000 life points and send one to the graveyard," Crowler said before Xander's three cards appeared in front of him; Polymerization, Change of Heart and Star Force Cloud Snake. "Hmm, I think will send Polymerization to the graveyard."

**Crowler: 3000**

**Xander: 4000**

Xander shrugged as he placed the card in his graveyard slot.

"Then I will place two cards face down," Crowler added slipping two cards into his spell and trap card slots before adding, "And now I activate Heavy Storm to destroy all spell and trap cards on the field."

As his two cards and Crowler's were destroyed, he frowned. "Why did you destroy your own cards though, teach?" he asked curiously.

Crowler gave him a smug smirk. "Now, now, you will soon know, young scholar," he said.

**. . .**

"Heavy Storm? I don't think that's a test deck," Bastion said with a frown.

"Why do you say that?" Syrus asked.

"Because they are both rare cards that can change the tide of a battle without serious cost," he explained.

"Uh oh, that's not good," Syrus said worriedly.

"Ah, Xander'll pull through," Jaden said confidently.

**. . .**

"Looks like Crowler's using his own deck against this loser," Saku commented.

"This duel's won. No one can compete against an expert's deck," Akio added.

Chazz smirked. "I think I'm going to enjoy Crowler wiping the floor with that kid. I just wish they treated all other second-rate duelists that apply at this academy the same way."

**. . .**

"What an elitist snob," Alexis said with a snort." Bullying some kid with his very best cards."

"You're too soft, Alexis," Zane said calmly. "I just hope we get to see that legendary rare card Crowler has stashed in that deck of his."

"Ready for your next lesson?" Crowler called.

"Bring it on," Xander said. "I'm having fun with this and to think Jaden thinks learning can't be fun."

"Yes, well, I am quite the teacher, thank you," he said as dark clouds appeared on his side of the field. "To continue, the two trap cards that were sent to the graveyard were two Statue of the Wicked cards. And when they're sent to the graveyard, I get two Wicked Tokens. I now sacrifice my two Wicked Tokens to summon Ancient Gear Golem!" The two Tokens vanished to be replaced by a robotic giant with working gears for joints towered over the two duelists (A: 3000/D: 3000).

"That's it, that's his legendary card" Alexis gasped.

"Now it looks like we're about to find out what makes it so legendary," Zane said.

**. . .**

Jaden whistled. "That's an awesome monster," he said. "Man, I've always wanted to take one on! Xan's so lucky."

Syrus stared at Jaden as if he had grown another head. "Either you're really brave or you're nuts," he said.

Jaden shrugged. "Xan says it's both," he said.

**. . .**

Crowler pointed to Sand Hound. "Golem attack, Mechanized Melee," he ordered and Xander shielded his face with his duel disk as Sand Hound was destroyed and a large chunk of his life points went away.

**Crowler: 3000**

**Xander: 1300**

Xander lowered his duel disk a broad grin on his face. "I really wanna come to this school now. You guys really know a lot," he said.

Crowler scowled though he had to admit that, while Xander wasn't proving to be that impressive of a duelist even though the duel was still young, he didn't seem to be as big a slacker as Crowler thought he was. He made a mental note to check Xander's written test score just to see where he stood in that area of the exam after he beat the kid.

"Your turn, Mr. Yuki," he said finally.

Xander nodded drawing a card. "First, I activate Starshine Draw. Here's how it works. As long as I give up 500 life points, I can draw add five cards to my hand," he said before drawing five cards to give him a total of seven.

**Crowler: 3000**

**Xander: 800**

"Now, I will activate the spell card Double Summon so that I can summon both Star Force Weapons Master and Star Force Shadow Apprentice to the field in defense mode," Xander added placing the two monsters in his monster card zone. A robotic humanoid-like monster surrounded by an energy shield and carrying a rifle in his hand appeared (A: 1600/D: 1500) followed by a silver-haired woman dressed entirely in black with a dagger in one hand and a star-shaped medallion hanging around her neck (A: 1600/D: 1000).

'_Whoa, who's the ugly one?_' Shadow Apprentice said staring at Crowler.

Xander rolled his eyes but there was a faint smile on his face. "I'll end my turn with one facedown," he said.

"All right, my draw," Crowler said drawing a card. "Ancient Gear Golem, attack his Star Force Weapons Master. Mechanized Melee."

"Sorry, Dr. Crowler," Xander said as the golem went to attack his Weapons Master. "When you attack Weapons Master, his special ability activates. He is allowed to negate a machine-type monsters attack once per turn."

The golem's first crashed into Weapons Master causing the energy shield to shimmer before he was sent back to Crowler's side of the field.

Crowler glared at him. _So he survived this round but his not going to survive the next round,_ he thought. "I end my turn," he said.

"My draw," Xander said drawing a card so that he had four cards before he looked at Shadow Apprentice and Weapons Master. "Well, I've got to win this duel guys so I'm gonna have to sacrifice ya," he said to them.

'_No problem. Just make sure the Master takes the ugly one out,_' Shadow Apprentice said.

Xander smirked. "I sacrifice Star Force Shadow Apprentice and Star Force Weapons Master in order to summon my Star Force Dark Master," he said before placing the card on his field as Apprentice and Weapons Master vanished to be replaced by a tall, armored figure with glowing silver eyes surrounded by a dark red nimbus and wielding a curved blade in his hands (A: 2900/D: 2500).

"Another amateurish mistake," Crowler said with a sneer when he saw that the monster was weaker than his own.

"I'm not done yet, Dr. Crowler," Xander said politely before holding out another card and saying, "I now equip my Dark Master with Saber of Light, which increases his attack points by 800." The curved sword in Dark Master's hands vanished to be replaced by a silver hilt out of which came a beam of bright blue light (A: 2900-3700/D: 2500).

Gasps of surprise sounded around the arena.

Xander pointed to Ancient Gear Golem. "Star Force Dark Master, attack Ancient Gear Golem with Dark Saber Slash!" He commanded.

'_It will be my pleasure,_' Dark Master shouted before leaping into the air and his blue blade sliced through the golem as if it was a piece of paper. He then jumped back to Xander's side as Ancient Gear Golem collapsed in a pile of rubble sending up a cloud of dust that caused Crowler to cough.

**Crowler: 2300**

**Xander: 800**

"Then I'm going to activate my Dark Master's ability. Once per turn, I'm allowed to return a dark attribute monster from my graveyard to my hand," Xander said retrieving the card from his graveyard. "I think I'll call it a turn."

He only barely noticed that several people were muttering to each other in the stands or staring at him with surprise in their eyes.

**. . .**

"Pure luck, that's all it was, _pure luck!_" Chazz exclaimed staring wide-eyed at the scene of the loser destroying Crowler's best and most powerful monster.

"Maybe this guy is better than we think he is," Saku said.

"Shut up, he got lucky. That's all there is to it," Chazz growled.

**. . .**

"That was an impressive move," Alexis admitted. "And I'm not even sure if it was entirely luck or not."

"I'm leaning toward it was but I suppose it will depend on what happens next," Zane said voice as expressionless as his face.

"I guess."

**. . .**

"Way to go, big bro!" Jaden shouted happily.

"He actually got rid of Ancient Gear Golem," Syrus exclaimed. "Dr. Crowler doesn't look happy."

"I doubt he would be. He did just lose his most powerful monster," Bastion said. "That was rather impressive though. I guess Xander really does know what he's doing with those cards."

**. . .**

Crowler finished coughing before studying Xander who was waiting patiently for the Obelisk Headmaster to make his move. While he was upset that the slacker destroyed his best monster, he had to admit it was a rather good move…for an amateur.

_He is still _not_ going to pass this test, no matter what,_ Crowler thought. "My draw," he said as a card popped out of his duel vest into his hand. He looked at it before saying, "I play Spellbook Inside the Pot so we can each draw three cards." Both of them did so before Crowler held up one of the cards he drew, "I then summon an Ancient Gear Soldier to the field in attack mode"—a moment later, a brown robotic monster with gears in it appeared on the field (A: 1300/D: 1300)—"Then I will place one card face down and end my turn."

"My draw," Xander said drawing a card so that now he had seven cards again and held out the card he drew. "First off, I'm activating the spell card Dian Keto the Cure Master to increase my life points by 1000." He then slipped the card into a spell/trap card slot.

**Crowler: 2300**

**Xander: 1800**

"Now, Star Force Dark Master, attack Ancient Gear Soldier. Dark Saber Slash!" Xander ordered.

"I activate my face down, Mirror Force!" Crowler declared.

_Dang it,_ Xander thought shielding his face as Dark Master was destroyed by the redirected slash.

"Don't feel too bad. This is the top dueling school in the country and some people simply aren't good enough," Crowler said.

"Maybe so but I'm definitely not among those," Xander said. "I'm summoning my Star Force Cloud Snake in defense mode and I end my turn with a face down." A moment later, a coiled white snake with a smooth silver carapace appeared on the field with a hiss (A: 400/D: 200).

Crowler, glowering at the kid's arrogance, drew a card before pointing to Xander. "Ancient Gear Soldier, attack Cloud Snake now," he ordered and Xander, expecting this, simply watched sadly as his snake was destroyed. It had to happen if he wanted to win this duel with the plan he was beginning to form.

"Finally, I will activate Monster Reincarnation and, by discarding one card in my hand, I can add a monster from my graveyard to my hand." He put a card in his hand into the graveyard before retrieving Ancient Gear Golem from the graveyard. "I'll end my turn now."

"My turn," Xander said drawing a card. "I'll just summon my Star Force Ice Phoenix in defense mode and end my turn." A beautiful blue-white bird with icicles on her wings appeared on the field tucking her wings against her body (A: 1700/D: 1500).

_If Crowler is planning what I think he's planning then I should wait until he goes through with his plan before I reveal _my_ plan. Now, the trick is surviving until that happens,_ he thought.

"Is that it? It's all right I suppose, for an amateur," Crowler said.

Xander just smirked.

Crowler gritted her teeth as he drew a card. "I summon my Ancient Gear Knight in attack mode," he began and a purple gear monster with a spear in one hand and a purple shield in the other appeared on the field (A: 1800/D: 500). "But he won't be here for long for now I sacrifice Ancient Gear Soldier and Ancient Gear Knight in order to bring out, you guessed it, my Ancient Gear Golem!" Both the knight and the soldier vanished to be replaced by the gigantic gear-filled monster (A: 3000/D: 3000).

_I knew it was coming but this still isn't good. Now I just have to hope I get the card I want on my next draw,_ Xander thought.

**. . .**

"Ah man, it's back?" Syrus cried.

"I'm not too surprised that Dr. Crowler's golem's back," Bastion said.

"Ah don't worry about it. Xander'll find a way to win," Jaden said.

"If you say so," Syrus murmured disbelievingly.

**. . .**

"Ha, Crowler's best monster's back. That loser won't stand a chance now," Chazz declared.

"Uh but he did defeat it before," Saku said.

Chazz gave his friend a piercing glare. "So?" he retorted. "I doubt there's a single monster in that loser's deck that'll be able to defeat the golem now that his Dark Master's gone."

"I suppose you're right," Akio said.

"Well duh."

**. . .**

"He's going to have a bit of trouble defeating that golem a second time unless he can get Dark Master and Saber of Light back," Alexis commented.

"It looks like Dr. Crowler may have won this duel," Zane said.

"Maybe," Alexis said; it seemed more likely than not that he had.

**. . .**

"Now then, Ancient Gear Golem, attack his Star Force Ice Phoenix, Mechanized Melee," Crowler called before pointing to the blue-white bird and Xander shielded his face as the golem destroyed the phoenix as well as inflicting damage on Xander.

**Crowler: 2300**

**Xander: 500**

"You've activated my Ice Phoenix's special ability," Xander said lowering his arm with a smile as the ice phoenix reappeared before flying over to Xander.

"What special ability?" Crowler demanded.

"When Ice Phoenix is destroyed in battle, I gain life points equal to her original defense points," Xander said as the Ice Phoenix bathed him in sparkling blue light.

**Crowler: 2300**

**Xander: 2000**

Crowler gritted his teeth. "I place one card face down end my turn," he said shortly.

"My move then," Xander said drawing a card so that he had five in his hand and he grinned because he knew he had this duel won. "First of all, I'm summoning my Star Force Shadow Apprentice to the field in defense mode." The silver-haired woman with the star-shaped medallion reappeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1000).

"Next, I play Monster Reborn to bring back my Star Force Dark Master to the field," Xander went on before his armored monster wielding his curved sword reappeared on the field (A: 2900/D: 2500).

"Him again? He is not strong enough to defeat my golem," Crowler said.

"Oh I know," Xander said with a grin.

**. . .**

"Sweet! Xander has this duel won!" Jaden shouted because he knew exactly what was coming so long as his brother had the right card on the field and Jaden had a feeling his brother did.

"What are you talking about? Dark Master is not strong to defeat Crowler's golem," Syrus said with a frown.

"Especially without Saber of Light," Bastion agreed.

"Just watch," was all Jaden said eyes glued to the arena as he waited for his brother to bring out his favorite monster.

**. . .**

"I wonder what he's planning," Alexis murmured. "He looks like he has a trick up his sleeve."

"Or rather on his field," Zane agreed. "He's planning something big. Whether it's enough to beat Dr. Crowler, I suppose we will just have to wait and see."

**. . .**

Chazz snorted. "That loser just doesn't know when to call it quits," he said with a snort.

"I dunno Chazz. He looks like he has a plan," Saku said.

"Yeah, a plan on how to deal with his defeat when Crowler creams him," Chazz said with another snort.

**. . .**

"I'm not done yet, Dr. Crowler," Xander said still grinning. "Now, I activate my trap: Ultimate Offering. For every 500 life points that I give up, I can normal summon a monster and since tribute summons are considered normal summons, I sacrifice 500 of my life points so that I can sacrifice my Star Force Dark Master and my Star Force Shadow Apprentice to summon this monster."

**Crowler: 2300**

**Xander: 1500**

"Come out, Star Force Shadow Dragon!" Xander cried; Dark Master and Shadow Apprentice looked at each other before nodding and then vanished as a cloud of darkness descended behind Xander morphing into the form of a dragon shrouded in shadows and speckled with tiny pinpricks of silver light; silver eyes gazed at Crowler as the dragon let out a roar that shook the arena (A: 3500/D: 3000).

"Not a bad move," Crowler said grudgingly. "But even if you did destroy my golem, I still have more life points than you."

"I know but then I haven't told you my Shadow Dragon's special ability," Xander said still smiling. "He gains 500 attack points for every Star Force monster in my graveyard."

**. . .**

"500 attack points for every Star Force monster in his graveyard?" Alexis repeated surprised beyond belief.

"That's why he didn't look too concerned when his monsters were destroyed," Zane commented.

"Either that or he's just good at hiding it," Alexis said.

**. . .**

"Uh, how many Star Force monsters are in his graveyard?" Syrus asked.

"Last count, six," Jaden said with a smirk.

"Six? But that's…"

"3000 extra attack points!" Bastion said surprised.

**. . .**

"I don't believe this. That loser's actually going to beat Dr. Crowler," Akio and Saku both said at the same time.

Chazz said nothing because he couldn't deny it; unless Dr. Crowler managed to pull some trick out of his sleeve, this duel was over.

**. . .**

"There are six Star Force monsters in my graveyard," Xander said. "So my dragon gains 3000 attack points. Of course, there is a drawback but I don't have to worry about that here." His dragon roared as the shadows around him grew thicker and his eyes began to glow brighter (A: 3500-6500/D: 3000).

"Now, Star Force Shadow Dragon, attack Ancient Gear Golem with Dark Star Blast," Xander ordered and his dragon roared before unleashing a stream of black and silver energy that struck the golem destroying him as well as the rest of Crowler's life points.

**Crowler: 0**

**Xander: 1500 WINNER**

"And that's game," Xander said with a smile. He firmly blamed his brother and his constant use of that phrase for that.

Crowler had been knocked backwards and now lay on the ground dazed.

"Uh, Dr. Crowler, you okay?"

Crowler blinked shocked that an amateur beat him before shaking his head. "I'm fine," he snapped getting to his feet.

"So does this mean I'm in?" Xander asked his former opponent who scowled and stalked away not responding.

**. . .**

"Congratulations Xan!" Jaden shouted throwing an arm around Xander's shoulder as he walked into the stands after having been informed by the administrators that he had, indeed, been accepted into the academy. They told him that he would have to go register but that they would need a bit of time to assess the duel, and his written test, to determine which rank he was to be given.

That meant that he had enough to time to watch Jaden's duel.

"Thanks Jay," he said.

"That was an amazing duel," Syrus said. "I wonder how Jaden's will turn out."

"It's gonna go the same exact way! Well, not _exactly _the same but I'm gonna win too," Jaden said.

"_Jaden Yuki please report to exam field 3, Jaden Yuki to exam field 3,_" the voice on the intercom said.

"Good luck, Jay," Xander said.

"Thanks Xan," Jaden said and jogged down the stairs and toward the field.

"He's going to need it. He's up against Crowler too," Bastion said.

Xander glanced sharply toward the exam field to see that Crowler had indeed made his way to the exam field where Jaden was heading.

"Oh boy. Why do I get the feeling Crowler's gonna take out his loss to me on my brother?"

"Probably 'cause he will," Syrus said.

_Definitely good luck to you then Jaden 'cause Crowler's not an easy opponent,_ Xander thought.

**. . .**

**A/n what do you think?**

**Blaze: I really enjoyed writing Xander and Crowler's duel and I hope I fixed all of the technical mistakes that my new Beta-reader EndlessNight025 pointed out to me.**

**Darth: I liked the introduction of some of Xander's monsters**

**Blaze: yup. The following is a list of the cards I created that are used in this chapter. I do own these by the way and I did change one of the effects for my monsters (Weapons Master) as I believe this makes more sense, well I think so anyway.**

_Star Force Sand Hound_

LIGHT

Level: 3

Beast-effect

Attack: 600

Defense: 300

Effect: when destroyed by battle, destroy one continuous trap card on the field

_Starshine Draw_

Normal Spell

Pay 500 life points and draw five cards from your deck.

_Star Force Weapons Master_

Level: 4

DARK

Machine-effect

Attack: 1600

Defense: 1500

Effect: once per turn, negate one attack from a machine-type monster

_Star Force Shadow Apprentice_

Level: 4

DARK

Warrior

Attack: 1600

Defense: 1000

_Star Force Dark Master_

Level: 7

DARK

Warrior-effect

Attack: 2900

Defense: 2500

Effect: Each turn, return one dark attribute monster from graveyard to your hand

_Saber of Light_

Equip Spell

When equipped to a warrior-type monster, increase attack points of monster by 800. When destroyed by battle along with equipped monster, inflict 800 points of damage to opponent.

_Star Force Cloud Snake_

Level: 2

LIGHT

Reptile-effect

Attack: 400

Defense: 200

Effect: when destroyed by battle, destroy one continuous or field spell on the field

_Star Force Ice Phoenix_

Level: 4

LIGHT

Winged beast-effect

Attack: 1700

Defense: 1500

Effect: when destroyed in battle, you gain life points equal to this card's original defense points

_Star Force Shadow Dragon_

Level: 8

DARK

Dragon-effect

Attack: 3500

Defense: 3000

Effect: this card gains 500 attack points for every Star Force monster in the graveyard. If destroyed by battle, you take extra damage equal to the extra points that were added to the original attack points

**Blaze: the remaining cards, you can find the information on the Yu-Gi-Oh! Wikipedia site (that's where I got the information anyway, well with the exception of the cards I created)**

**Darth: that's cool. What's going to happen in the next chapter?**

**Blaze: Jaden's duel with Crowler, which is going to go differently and will likely be shorter than this duel, journey to Duel Academy, introducing Nightshade07's OC, and, possibly, meeting Chazz. It mostly depends on how long Jaden's duel with Crowler is since it'll likely be shorter than Xander's duel but I'm going to make it to where Jaden does get to shine like his brother.**

**Darth: oh cool**

**Blaze: so please review and I will post chapter two as soon as I possibly can**


	3. Chapter Two

**Thank you to **_**JxA fan 2000, IfTimeWasStill, EndlessNight025, Nightshade07 **_**and**_** decode9**_** for reviewing the last chapter. You guys are the greatest.**

**Also, a huge thank you to **_**EndlessNight025**_** who is now my beta-reader.**

**Here is chapter 2 and I hope that you like it, reviews, as always, are much appreciated.**

_**Disclaimer:**__ I do not own Raisa Vallen (Nightshade07 does)_

**Chapter Two**

When he heard the name of the last duelist who would be going against Crowler as well, Chazz narrowed his eyes. He had underestimated Xander Yuki and he had to wonder if Jaden Yuki would be able to pull off a win against Crowler as well. He scoffed at the notion. _Xander won by sheer dumb luck_, he thought.

"Maybe Crowler'll beat this Yuki," Akio said.

"Crowler looks like he wants to start spitting fire though," Saku commented. "Probably 'cause his best monster was beat twice and he lost to a newcomer."

Chazz snorted. "He'll cream this other Yuki," he said.

Saku looked over at Akio. _That's what he said about the last duel_, he thought but didn't repeat his thought out loud.

**. . .**

"Jaden Yuki? Wonder if they're related," Alexis said.

"Maybe," Zane said softly. "Though Yuki is a common last name, so it's possible they aren't."

"True, but he's going against Crowler too? Isn't that a bit unfair? I mean, Crowler might take out his loss to Xander on Jaden."

Zane didn't respond.

**. . .**

"Do you think he'll stand a chance against Crowler?" Syrus asked, glancing at Xander who had taken a seat next to Bastion and had his eyes fixed on the exam field.

"Yeah, he'll be fine," Xander said.

"Wonder if Crowler'll use his deck against Jaden too or if he'll use a test deck?" Bastion said.

"He'll probably use his real deck," Xander said.

"Probably."

"By the way, Xander, did you really design those Star Force cards?" Syrus asked.

"Yeah, I did," Xander said absently as the duel between Crowler and his brother began.

**. . .**

"And what is your name, son?" Crowler asked after shuffling his deck and slipping it into his duel vest.

Jaden was surprised that he would be facing off against the teacher his brother just beat. "Uh…Jaden Yuki, sir," he replied.

"Well, uh…Jaden Yuki, as you already heard from my duel with Xander, I am Dr. Vellian Crowler, Department Chair and Techniques Professor," Crowler said.

"Yeah, I heard. Thought you were the mascot for a minute there, though," Jaden said, rubbing the back of his neck with a sheepish smile while Crowler's eye seemed to twitch.

"Yes, well, let's start this," Crowler said, activating his duel vest while Jaden activated his duel disk.

"Duel!"

**Crowler: 4000**

**Jaden: 4000**

"I will begin this duel this time," Crowler said before his sixth card appeared in his hand. "I will begin by summoning Ancient Gear Soldier to the field in Attack Mode." The brown robotic figure that Jaden recognized from his brother's duel appeared on the field (A: 1300/D: 1300).

"Then I will activate the Spell Card Pot of Duality," Crowler added and a jar with two different faces on either side of it appeared on the field.

"What's it do?" Jaden asked curiously.

"It allows me to look at the top three cards in my deck and add one of them to my hand but I will have to replace the other two in my deck and shuffle," Crowler said as the top three cards in his deck appeared in front of him; Monster Reborn, Ancient Gear and Magical Mallet.

"Hmm, I think I will go with this one," Crowler said, adding Monster Reborn to his hand before shuffling the other two back into his deck. "I will end my turn with one face down."

"All right, my turn," Jaden said, drawing his sixth card and sticking it with his other cards he added, "Now I'm summoning Elemental HERO Bubbleman to my field in Defense Mode."

A blue-armored figure with a visor and a pale-blue cape appeared crouched on the field (A: 800/D: 1200).

"And since Bubbleman's out while I have no other monsters on my field, I get to draw two more cards. Pretty sweet, huh?" Jaden added, drawing two more cards to add to his hand. "Then I'll throw down two face downs and that's it."

"Hmm, a rather amateurish start, but I expected nothing less," Crowler said as another card came into his hand. "Now, I summon another Ancient Gear Soldier to my field in Attack Mode."

"Now, Ancient Gear Soldier, attack Bubbleman," the Obelisk Headmaster ordered and the soldier came forward before destroying Bubbleman.

Jaden just smiled and said, "Because you attacked my Bubbleman, you set off one of my favorite Trap Cards—Hero Signal! Now I'm allowed to summon a level 4 or below Elemental HERO from either my hand or my deck and I'm summoning Elemental HERO Burstinatrix in defense mode!"

A beam of shot from the deck to create a bright H above them and, after it faded, a gray-skinned female in a red bodysuit appeared kneeling down on the field (A: 1200/D: 800).

"Won't matter either way, young scholar, because, as you can see, I do have another monster on the field," Crowler said before pointing to Burstinatrix and adding, "Now, Ancient Gear Soldier, attack Burstinatrix!"

Jaden shielded his face as, with a cry, Burstinatrix was destroyed.

"And I'll end my turn now," Crowler said.

**. . .**

"The chump's defenseless now," Akio said.

"Not for long," Saku replied.

"Crowler knows that," Chazz said. "But it won't be long before that loser is sent home."

**. . .**

"He would have taken damage had he not summoned Burstinatrix in defense mode when he did," Alexis commented.

Zane didn't respond. Instead, he said, "I wonder if Dr. Crowler will summon Ancient Gear Golem again."

"Probably," said Alexis. "But if Jaden paid attention to Xander's duel then he might know how to beat it."

"Perhaps, but I would not underestimate Crowler."

**. . .**

"Ah man, he's defenseless now," Syrus cried.

"Relax, Syrus. Crowler doesn't have any cards left on his field and he can't attack anymore. Jay's fine," Xander said. _But for how long? Crowler likely has something up his sleeve to bring out his Golem. I just hope Jaden'll be able to figure that out for himself_, he thought.

**. . .**

"My draw," Jaden said, drawing a card before he added, "And I activate the Spell Card Pot of Greed to draw two more cards." He drew two more cards before saying, "And now I'm summoning my Elemental HERO Avian to the field in Defense Mode!"

A moment later, his winged, feathered green-skinned monster appeared crouched on the field with his wings tucked against him (A: 1000/D: 1000).

"Then I'll throw down a face down and end my turn," Jaden added.

Crowler snorted as he drew a card.

"I activate my trap card," Jaden said almost before Crowler had a chance to look at the card in his hand. "Thunder of Ruler. Now, there is no battle phase for this turn."

Crowler scowled furiously. _So he survives another round. This will all end during my next turn though,_ he thought. "I activate Pot of Greed to draw two more cards," he declared before drawing two more cards; one of which was one that he would need to win this duel.

"And now I summon Ancient Gear Knight to my field in Defense Mode," Crowler added and the large, purple robotic monster filled with gears appeared on the field with his weapon and shield, holding a defensive position (A: 1800/D: 500). "Then I will end my turn," Crowler said.

_It won't matter what you do now though, slacker_, he thought.

"My draw," Jaden said, drawing a card. "First off, I'm playing the Spell Card O-Oversoul! This allows me to summon one Elemental HERO from my Graveyard to my field and I choose Burstinatrix." A large O appeared in the air before it disappeared to be replaced by the female hero in the red bodysuit (A: 1200/D: 800).

Crowler scoffed. "I see, yet another amateurish mistake," he said with a sneer.

"I'm not finished yet," Jaden interrupted. "Now, I know neither of my heroes is powerful enough to take on your soldiers or your knight; not by themselves, anyway. But that's about to change. I activate the spell card Polymerization to fuse my Avian and my Burstinatrix in order to form Elemental HERO Flame Wingman!"

Avian and Burstinatrix flew at each other and fused together creating a muscular figure with Avian and Burstinatrix's colors—red and green—but with a white wing coming out of the right side of his back and a red dragon's head as his left arm (A: 2100/D: 1200).

"Now, Flame Wingman, attack Ancient Gear Soldier with Skydive Scorcher," Jaden ordered and his Flame Wingman flew into the air before diving downward toward the soldier, destroying it.

**Crowler: 3200**

**Jaden:**** 4000**

"And Flame Wingman has a sweet special ability too," Jaden said, grinning. "When he destroys a monster in battle, you take damage equal to that monster's Attack Points."

Crowler yelped as Flame Wingman unleashed a stream of fire that struck him solidly in the face.

**Crowler: 1900**

**Jaden: 4000**

"I'll end my turn with one face down," Jaden added slipping the face down into a Spell/Trap Card slot.

"My draw then," Crowler said through gritted teeth—he was not going to lose to another Yuki, no matter what, even though the odds were strongly in Jaden's favor at the moment—as he drew a card before looking at it. "And I play the Spell Card Reload. Now, I add every card in my hand to my deck and shuffle; then I get to draw the same number of cards that I added." Getting rid of all of his cards was risky but he decided to risk it in order to get the monster he wanted on the field. Just because Xander beat his Golem didn't mean Jaden would be able to.

"Finally, I will place one card face down to end my turn," Crowler said as there wasn't much else he could do.

"Okay," Jaden said drawing another card before pausing when he spotted who it was and a faint coo sounded. He blinked, surprised that he had heard that and he recalled Yugi telling him that this card belonged with him.

_It's weird. I'm starting to believe that too_, he thought. He placed the card with the others before saying, "All right, Flame Wingman attack his Ancient Gear Soldier with Skydive Scorcher."

"Ah, looks like the young scholar forgot something," Crowler said with a smirk. _Made the same mistake Xander did_, he thought. "I activate my Trap Card, Mirror Force. Now, not only is your attack stopped but your Wingman is destroyed!"

Jaden shielded his face with his duel disk as the backlash of the attack destroyed Wingman, leaving him with only two facedown cards on his field.

_Now what do I do? 'Cause I get the feeling Dr. Crowler's planning on bringing something big out. Maybe I'll get to battle that Golem after all_. Jaden lookws at his cards for an answer, his eyes strayed to the Winged Kuriboh and he could have sworn he saw the Kuriboh wink at him.

_Well, if that isn't a sign to play you then I don't know what is_, he thought.

"I play Winged Kuriboh in Defense Mode and end my turn. Not bad, eh, teach?" he said, placing the card on the monster slot and the winged ball of fur with its tiny claws tucked against him appeared on the field (A: 300/D: 200).

Crowler just laughed. "No, not bad, but you must understand that I'm a master technician. A Kuriboh to me is rather pedestrian, even one with wings," he said as he drew a card and smirked. "Its Defense Points are also no match for my next monster."

"I sacrifice Ancient Gear Soldier and Ancient Gear Knight in order to summon my Ancient Gear Golem," Crowler declared. His two gear monsters vanished to be replaced by the giant monster made almost entirely out of gears (A: 3000/D: 3000).

**. . .**

"Ah man, not that card," Syrus complained. "How's Jaden going to get out of this one?"

"He'll get outta it," Xander said with a shrug. "I did."

"Yeah but he's defenseless! He only has that Kuriboh," Syrus protested.

"Which is a good thing, Syrus," Bastion said.

"How is that a good thing?"

"When Winged Kuriboh is destroyed, all battle damage goes to zero for the rest of the turn so, even with Golem's ability, Jaden won't take any damage."

"Oh, I didn't know that," Syrus said.

"Now you do," Xander said.

**. . .**

"Nice, this loser is as good as beat," Chazz declared upon seeing the Obelisk Headmaster's best and most powerful monster appear on the field.

"That'll teach that loser to try to enter our school," Akio said with a sneer. "Crowler's mopping the floor with him."

**. . .**

"Now, Ancient Gear Golem, attack that furball with Mechanized Melee," Crowler ordered, grinning as Golem attacked, punching the Winged Kuriboh and causing it to shatter.

Jaden shielded his face again. _Sorry, Winged Kuriboh_, he thought.

Crowler frowned. "Check your gear. Your Life Points haven't changed," he said.

"My gear's fine," Jaden said with a shrug. "On the turn Winged Kuriboh is destroyed, I take zero damage."

Crowler looked dumbstruck; he hadn't known that, though he knew the original Kuriboh could do something like that.

The audience was also surprised that he didn't know that.

**. . .**

"Well, how about that? A technique the good doctor didn't know," Alexis commented.

"No one can expect anyone to know every technique," Zane argued, "especially one as obscure as that."

Alexis smirked inwardly. "Yeah, well that kid sure knew it," she said.

**. . .**

"Awesome. That means Jaden's still in this," Syrus said with a grin.

Xander nodded in agreement. _For now, anyway. I sure hope you've got a plan, Jay_, he thought.

"Fine, fine, I guess your little lame monster saved you there," Crowler said with a sneer.

'_He did not call our furry little friend lame!_' Sand Hound howled angrily. He was watching the duel from Xander's side and was glaring balefully at Crowler.

"Whoa, slow down there, teach. Just because you beat him doesn't give you the excuse to call him lame," Jaden retorted.

"Oh yes, I forgot how you new duelists get attached to your monsters. I'm sorry," Crowler said mockingly.

'_Can I bite him?_' Sand Hound barked.

Xander glanced at the duel spirit in amusement and simply shook his head.

'_Dang it._'

**. . .**

"I will end my turn with a face down. Your turn unless you wish to give up. After all, the Academy isn't for everyone," Crowler said.

Jaden, still upset over the insult to Kuriboh, simply said, "I'm not giving up. I'm just warming up." _Besides, I do still have all of my life points. Odds are in my favor to win this, _he thought drawing a card. "I'll start by activating Card of Demise to draw until I have five cards in my hand." He drew one card to be added to his hand.

"Just remember to get rid of your hand in five turns," Crowler said.

"Yeah, sure, teach, not that I'll need to," Jaden said with a shrug.

"Oh and why is that?"

"I've got this duel won," he replied, looking at his cards; one that he drew a few turns back and the other that he drew after activating Card of Demise.

Crowler scowled. "Oh, you do? And how do you plan on doing that?"

"By activating this card, Re-Fusion," Jaden declared.

**. . .**

"Yes, Jay has this duel won," Xander said with a grin.

"Why do you say that?" Syrus asked with a frown. "What does that card do?"

"It allows Jaden to Special Summon a Fusion Monster that was sent to the graveyard so long as he pays 800 Life Points," Xander said.

"The only Fusion Monster he has in the Graveyard is Flame Wingman, but he is not strong enough to defeat Dr. Crowler's Golem," Bastion said with a frown. "He's planning something. Why else would he bring back a weaker monster, even one with Wingman's special ability?"

**. . .**

"By paying 800 Life Points, I can Special Summon a Fusion Monster from my Graveyard and I choose Elemental HERO Flame Wingman," Jaden said, slipping the Re-Fusion Spell Card into a Spell/Trap Card slot as the red-and-green form of Flame Wingman reappeared on the field (A: 2100/D: 1200).

**Crowler: 1900**

**Jaden: 3200**

"Why bother bringing him back? He is too weak to defeat my Golem," Crowler said.

"By himself, yeah,' Jaden said with a grin before he held out another card. But not after I play this card: Skyscraper!"

A moment later, the field changed until it was surrounded by tall buildings, as if they were in the middle of a city with Ancient Gear Golem dwarfed by a few of the buildings while Flame Wingman was perched on the tallest of the skyscrapers.

"All right, Flame Wingman, time to show those heroics," Jaden called. "Attack Ancient Gear Golem with Skydive Scorcher!"

Crowler glared at Wingman as he shot toward Golem, surrounded by flames, just as it had the last time it attacked one of Crowler's monsters. "That Field Spell of yours didn't lower a single Attack Point of my Golem so this is a wasted move but fine, bring him on," he said angrily.

"You're right, teach," Jaden agreed. "It didn't do anything to Golem. What it did do was raise my Wingman's Attack Points by a total of 1000!"

Wingman, as it continued its dive, began to glow brighter as his power increased (A: 2100-3100/D: 1200).

"Wait! Time out!" Crowler cried when he realized that his Golem was about to get destroyed but the Wingman didn't stop as he flew straight threw Golem, destroying him.

**Crowler: 1800**

**Jaden: 3200**

"And I'm sure you remember his special ability," Jaden said. "Now, you take damage equal to your Golem's Attack Points."

The golem collapsed onto Crowler, knocking him down and taking out the rest of his Life Points.

**Crowler: 0**

**Jaden: 3200 WINNER**

"And that's game," Jaden said, giving the professor a two finger salute. "So, does this mean I pass the test, teach?"

The holograms faded, leaving the field as empty as it had been at the beginning of the duel while Crowler remained on the ground, furious. "Impossible! How could two tardy delinquents have beaten me back to back?!" he hissed to himself, not answering Jaden's question as he got to his feet.

"Uh, teach?" Jaden began, but Crowler ignored him as he left the field.

**. . .**

"It was dumb luck again!" Chazz declared upon seeing the other Yuki kid defeat Crowler. "There's no way Crowler would lose to two losers back to back."

"It seems he has though," Saku said.

Chazz glared at him but said nothing.

**. . .**

"Both of those kids definitely got futures here, wow," she said before glancing toward Zane.

Zane just walked away without a word.

**. . .**

"Yay! Jaden won!" Syrus shouted.

_Nice_, Bastion thought, looking from Jaden to Xander and back again._ I could use some good competition._

Xander joined his brother as Jaden made his way into the stands. "Congrats, baby bro," he said, putting an arm around his brother's shoulder.

Jaden seemed too happy about his victory to have noticed what Xander called him. "Hey thanks," he said before he looked at the Winged Kuriboh card curiously.

'_Looks like someone's got himself a duel spirit,_' Sand Hound barked from Xander's side when the Winged Kuriboh in the card winked at Jaden.

_I'm not too surprised by that, really,_ Xander thought.

**. . .**

A few days later, the twins, Bastion, and Syrus were on the helicopter heading to Duel Academy. Jaden had slept for only half of the journey after leaving Domino and then spent the remaining time speaking with Syrus; the two of them had become fast friends after the entrance exam duels.

Xander and Bastion—who had become fast friends too, not that Jaden was that surprised. They did have some things in common—were seated across from them, talking quietly with each other. Bastion had been curious about the new Star Force cards and was asking Xander questions about them. Xander didn't seem to mind answering them.

"Attention, new Academy students, this is your captain speaking. If you would look out your window you'll see your new home away from home," the captain said, causing Jaden to look toward the window.

He examined the island the helicopter was approaching. It was large, covered partially in forest with sandy beaches sloping into the ocean and a large, dormant volcano on the other side of the island. Near its center was a large domed building with four peaked spires around it and three dome-like dishes going downward in front of the building; blue, yellow and red respectively.

"Next stop, Academy Island, please fasten your seatbelts and sit in an upright position as we make our landing," the captain said.

**. . .**

Raisa Vallen—a short pale-skinned girl with waist-length purple hair that curled at the end and dark purple eyes with a heart-shaped locket around her neck—took a seat as the rest of the new students made their way into the large lecture hall where they were told to go upon arriving on Academy Island. It was a sea of red, yellow and blue, with everyone sitting down with others who were wearing the same color. Raisa, herself, had been among the last to arrive and was currently the only one in her row.

'_Looks like you're about to have company,_' Ma'at, the duel spirit that occasionally appeared to Raisa, said, appearing at her side.

Ma'at was a female figure with a white-gold headdress, black shoulder plates attached to which was a white cap and white-gold armor with a white-gold skirt. She carried the Millennium Rod in one hand and the Millennium Scale in the other.

Raisa looked up to find two students talking with each other making their way down the row; they were Slifers, like Raisa.

'_Look, down there. He wasn't there before,_' Ma'at added, sounding surprised and Raisa followed where her hand was pointing to where a couple of Ras were seated a few rows below her. At first, she didn't know what Ma'at was pointing at until she spotted it; a sand-colored hound duel spirit was seated in front of a black-haired Ra.

_I wonder if that kid can see that duel spirit too. Probably can,_ she thought.

The two Slifers took seats on Raisa's other side and she turned her attention back to the front of the lecture hall, hoping that they wouldn't try speaking to her as she didn't know what to say. Not that she had to worry. A few minutes later, the dark-brown haired boy sitting next to her was taking a nap and the blue-haired boy on his other side was looking around. He then looked toward the front of the hall—the other boy remained asleep—as the screen that hung in front of them flickered on. A bald man who looked to be in his late forties with a goatee and a dark red blazer appeared on it.

"Good morning and welcome, my students," the Chancellor said in a pleasant voice. "I am Chancellor Sheppard, the headmaster here, and you are the best and brightest duelists in the world."

"Now, please, get yourselves settled in at your assigned dorms. I hope you find them quite comfortable, depending on how you ranked, of course," he added with a slight chuckle.

_And what's that supposed to mean?_ Raisa wondered before she glanced toward the mass of students heading for the doors and decided to wait until there weren't as many students so that she didn't get trampled.

Once most of the students had already left, Raisa walked out of the lecture hall. Making her way out of the main building, she looked at her Duel Pilot. On it was her dorm room number; at the moment, she was the only female Slifer so she would have an entire room to herself, away from the boys. That's what the message included with her room assignment said, anyway.

_Now where's the Slifer dorm?_ She thought, scrolling through the folders and other pages on her Duel Pilot to find the map of the island. She pulled it up as she came to a stop near a stone decoration in the academy's courtyard and was attempting to locate the Slifer Dorm when someone ran into her.

Startled, she dropped her Duel Pilot though managed to stay on her feet.

"Oh sorry," the dark-haired boy said apologetically, bending down to pick up the Duel Pilot.

"Way to go, Jaden, that's the second person you've run into in the past week," the Ra with the duel spirit said as he and the other Ra walked over to join them. "You really should learn to watch where you're going."

The boy—Jaden—glared at the other boy as he handed Raisa her Duel Pilot, but didn't respond. "So you're in Red too?" he asked her.

Raisa nodded mutely. He seemed nice enough but she was so used to being alone that she was quiet and shy around new people.

"What about you two?" Jaden asked, glancing at the two Ras.

"Let's see…yellow sleeves, yellow buttons, I don't think so," the other Ra said.

"Oh, so that's how that works," Jaden said.

"Did you seriously just figure that out?"

"So what? You ever think that maybe I was color-blind," Jaden demanded, glaring at him.

"You're not, Jay," the Ra with the duel spirit said.

"Well, I could've been," Jaden said with a snicker. He glanced at Raisa before adding, "Oh, I'm Jaden by the way. That's my brother Xander, he's Bastion and he's Syrus." He gestured to the Ra with the duel spirit, his companion and the blue-haired boy that Raisa hadn't noticed, respectively.

Raisa knew it was only polite to introduce herself so she said quietly, "I'm Raisa."

"Nice to meet ya and, again, sorry for running into ya," Jaden said brightly. He glanced toward Xander before adding, "Well, this is gonna be different if we're in different dorms."

"Uh huh," Xander agreed. "We should probably get to our dorm."

"Hey, maybe we'll see each other and Bastion around the dorms," Jaden said.

"Doubt it," Bastion said before he pointed his thumb toward the other side of the island. "Your dorms are over there."

Raisa, bringing up the map of the island again, nodded. "Yeah it is," she said softly.

"Oh well, I guess I'll see ya guys in class," Jaden said.

"See you then and try and actually show up, Jay," Xander said before he and Bastion walked away, leaving the two boys and Raisa to walk the distance to the Slifer Dorm.

**. . .**

"242…244…246…here it is," Xander said, coming to a stop in front of the door that had the number 248 on it. Tucking his Duel Pilot away, he glanced toward Bastion who had come to a stop in front of the door across the hall from him.

"Looks like we're neighbors," Bastion commented.

"Looks like it," Xander agreed before he unlocked his door and pushed it open.

Flicking on the lights, he noticed that the doom room was large with windows that allowed a view of the ocean. There was a desk resting against the wall and a bad across from the desk; beside the bed was a nightstand and next to the desk was a floor lamp. There was also a circular table in the middle of the room and a dresser resting on the wall across from the windows. There was also a stove and a sink in the room.

_Sweet,_ Xander thought before he began unpacking.

He spent the next half hour setting up his computer and organizing everything he had brought with him. It was definitely going to be different having his own room as he has been sharing with his brother for as long as he could remember.

'_You'll see him around campus,_' Sand Hound barked as he appeared and began prowling around the room.

"True," Xander said. "Or wherever there's a duel going on." He looked around his room again to make sure everything was in place before he left the room to explore the island. Sand Hound padded after him.

**. . .**

"This is our dorm? It looks more like an outhouse with a deck," Syrus exclaimed as the two Slifer boys and one Slifer girl reached the dorm house. It was a two-story apartment-like building with a red roof and a balcony, sitting near a cliff that overlooked the sea.

"Are you kidding me, Syrus? Check out the view; this place is great," Jaden said with a grin before he jogged over to the staircase and made his way to the second floor of the dorm house. Syrus followed him while Raisa made her way toward to one of the rooms on the first floor.

When Jaden and Syrus reached their dorm room—they found out that they were roommates—Jaden said, "Alrighty, this is our room, Sy."

The room was small, with two desks on the left wall a window across from the door and a three-person bunk bed on the right wall with a small stove next to the door.

Syrus looked around with a frown. "It's pretty small, don't you think?" he said.

"Hey, you're a small guy," Jaden replied. "But, anyway, I like it. This'll be a sweet pad for our first year at the academy."

"Yeah kinda weird meeting up at the entrance exams, and now roommates?" Syrus said. "You think we were connected in some past ancient life, Jaden?"

Jaden glanced toward him. "No offense but that's just lame," Jaden said. "They broke the mold when they made the two of us and Xander."

"For very different reasons," Syrus muttered.

"We need to work on that confidence of yours," Jaden said. "But first let's work on some lights." He walked over to the window and pulled back the curtain, allowing shafts of brilliant sunlight to drift into the room.

"Hey! Those were closed for a reason," a voice snapped and Jaden and Syrus jumped before turning to the source of the voice, which was coming from the top bunk.

"Sorry," Syrus said.

"Yeah, we didn't see you up there," Jaden added.

"Well, can you see me now?!" An angry heavy-set boy with black hair, thick eyebrows and a big nose—he vaguely resembled a koala—looked at them over the top of the bunk. The two boys screamed in response, to which the boy scowled.

"Will you stop your screaming? Who are you and what are you doing in my room?" he demanded.

"Oh, sorry," Jaden said, calming down, "name's Jaden Yuki."

"And I'm Syrus," the little Slifer said.

"We're your new…" Jaden began only for the boy in the bed to turn his back on them, "…roommates?"

"You're new, all right, so lemme tell you how things work," the boy said.

"Like when Parent's Visit is?" Syrus asked, blinking.

"Duh, like how the whole color thing works. That's the most important thing you have to worry about here. There are three-colored dorms here; one named after each of the Egyptian God Cards. There's the Obelisk Blue students, the Ra Yellow students and the Slifer Red Students. Now, the Obelisk Blue students are the highest ranking students. Most of 'em get into the school and their rank by really high grades, while others get in by connections; Ra Yellow students are really gifted kids that have a lot of potential and then there are us, the Red Wonders."

"The Wonders? That doesn't sound too bad. Like a group of superheroes or something," Syrus said.

The boy ignored him. "The Red Wonders as in 'I wonder how rejects like us made it even this far'. A lot of people look down on the Slifers because they're the lowest ranking students on the island, nothing but the bottom of the barrel."

The two Slifers looked at each other as the boy added, "Oh, by the way I'm Chumley. Nice to meet you."

**. . .**

Xander wandered around campus, familiarizing himself with the layout of the campus as well as the main building so that he didn't get lost when classes started. He was still looking around when he came across a portion of the main building that was rather large. "Huh, wonder what's in here," he murmured.

"Hurry up, Syrus! There's some sweet due action going on right now."

Xander glanced toward the source to find Jaden approaching fast with Syrus lagging behind him, looking out of breath.

"How do you know? You got a sixth sense about dueling or something?" he gasped.

Jaden grinned as the two slowed to a walk. "It's in the air, Syrus. Can't you just smell it?"

"Maybe if the pollen count was lower…"

"Hey, Xan!" Jaden shouted upon seeing his brother. "Decided to check out the island?"

Xander just nodded and glanced toward the building he had arrived at, still wondering what was inside it.

"Let's go check out this place," Jaden suggested.

Xander smiled. "Great minds think alike," he said before the twins and Syrus entered the building. Veering to the left, they walked into a large dueling arena with stands on the walls.

"Now this is sweet. This is the best dueling arena I've ever seen," Jaden said.

Xander chuckled at his brother's enthusiasm.

"Do you think we're allowed in here?" Syrus asked worriedly. "I mean, I don't want us to get into trouble or anything."

"Nah, we're students here and this is our campus," Jaden said with a shake of his head.

"Wrong. This is the Obelisk Blue campus. No Slifer Red slackers or Ra Yellow rejects allowed."

The two Slifers and one Ra turned to see a pair of boys in dark-blue blazers walking toward them.

Xander raised an eyebrow. "There's no rule saying we can't be here," he said.

"Oh, there is. Look at the crest," the first boy said, pointing to the entrance to the arena; it was an image of a blue demonic creature with horns coming out of the sides of its head; Xander recognized the image as that of Obelisk the Tormentor.

"This is Blue Territory, no Reds or Yellows allowed," the second boy sneered.

Syrus looked nervous. "Oh, sorry. We didn't know. We'll leave, right guys?" he asked, looking at Jaden and Xander.

Jaden shrugged. "Nah, I don't think so. We don't have to leave if"—he nodded to one of the students—"one of you guys agrees to duel me. Then I'll be a guest duelist."

"Leave it to you to get into a duel your first day here," Xander said with a small smile.

"Hey, we could make it a tag-team duel," Jaden said. "We haven't had one of those in years."

"Wait a minute, you're those kids," the first man said, surprised.

The other student turned his head before shouting, "Hey Chazz! The guys who beat Dr. Crowler are here!"

A taller boy in a blue blazer with spiky black hair and the same-colored eyes stood by the railing above the arena gazing coolly at the three of them, at the twins in particular.

"Hey, sup? I'm Jaden and you're…Chuzz, was it?" he asked.

Xander smacked his forehead. "Chazz," he said to his brother while the other two Obelisks glared at him furious.

"He's Chazz Princeton and he was the number on duelist at Duelist Prep School, so you be sure to pay the proper respect," one of Chazz's friends snapped.

"Yeah, he's gonna be the next King of Games, the best duelist in the world," the other kid said.

Jaden snorted. "Impossible," he said.

"What did you say?" the first kid said angrily.

"I said it's impossible for him to be the next King of Games 'cause that's exactly what I'm gonna be or my brother," Jaden said, grinning and nodding toward Xander.

The two Obelisks burst out laughing.

"You? A Slifer slacker, or your Ra reject brother, the next King of games? That'll be the day," the second kid said with a sneer.

"Can it, you two," Chazz snapped, reminding them that he was there. "Maybe the new kid's right. He and the Ra reject did beat Crowler, after all…and that legendary rare monster of his. I guess it takes some skill to pull that off."

"Ah, thanks," Jaden said.

"I don't think that was a compliment, Jay," Xander murmured.

"Or maybe it was just pure luck, which is what I believe," Chazz went on, ignoring the twins. "I say we find that out right now."

"Bring it!" Jaden replied.

"Why not make it a tag-duel?" Xander suggested, remembering Jaden's suggestion from earlier.

"Well, this certainly is a motley crew," a new voice said before the Obelisks could reply and a slender girl with long blonde hair dressed in the Obelisk blue uniform walked over to join them.

"Wow, who's she?" Syrus whispered loudly.

Chazz smirked at her. "Hey, Alexis. You come to watch me mop the floor with my new friends Jaden and Xander? I promise you it'll be a short duel, but it'll be fun too," he said.

Alexis crossed her arms. "I came you remind you guys that you're late for the Obelisks' Welcome Dinner."

"Oh yeah," Chazz said, leaping over the railing to land lightly on the arena floor. "Come on, guys." The three of them left the arena without a backwards glance.

Alexis shook her head before looking at the two Slifers and one Ra. "Sorry about him," she said gently. "Not all us Obelisks are like that. Chazz is just a big jerk, especially with Slifers."

"Ah, it's no big deal," Jaden said with a shrug.

"We've dealt with worse," Xander added, also shrugging.

"Huh?" Alexis looked confused and surprised.

"Those types don't really bother me and Xan at all," Jaden said.

"They're just bullies and we don't let anything bullies say get to us," Xander said, thinking about his and Jaden's school years before the academy where the others students often mocked them and taunted them because of the fact that their parents were hardly ever home. They had learned to ignore the bullies unless they got physical, then they would fight back.

"Besides, I could take him down in one turn," Jaden declared.

"Uh huh," Xander said with a smirk.

"Well, two turns, okay maybe two and a half," Jaden said thoughtfully, ignoring his brother.

Alexis chuckled.

"Hey, what's so funny?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it," Alexis said, cutting herself off. "Oh yeah, the Slifer Welcoming Dinner is starting too and you don't want to be late."

"Well, we gotta get some food before it's all gone," Jaden said, starting to jog away.

"Wait up!" Syrus called dashing after the twins.

Jaden skidded to a stop right before they left the arena. "Oh, what was your name again?" he called out.

Alexis blinked before smiling a little. "My name's Alexis. Alexis Rhodes. And you are?"

"Jaden Yuki," Jaden called back before he dashed off.

Xander shook his head as he watched his brother run off before he glanced at Alexis. "I'm Xander Yuki by the way," he said.

"You're the kid with those Star Force cards, aren't ya?" Alexis said.

"Yeah, I am."

"Are you related to Jaden?"

"He's my twin."

"Twin? That makes sense. You two do look alike," the blonde Obelisk said. "But you should probably get going too. Your Welcoming Dinner's likely starting too."

"Oh yeah!" Xander dashed off, heading toward the Ra dorm.

**. . .**

Raisa gazed at her food—which was only a small dish of rice and sardines with chopsticks beside them—before she looked around the meal hall of the Slifer Dorm. She could hear everyone complaining about the food.

"This is our big, fancy welcome dinner?" one student said.

"Forget the dinner, look at our headmaster! It's a cat," another student said, pointing to a pudgy tabby cat that was snoozing.

Raisa doubted the cat was the headmaster and was proved right when a tall, skinny man with dark-hair and a pair of glasses came out of the kitchen area. "Hello, children," he greeted them; Raisa detected a slight German accent. "I'm Professor Banner. Before we eat, I would like everyone to say some…"

"This is great!" Jaden interrupted, already eating the food that everyone else had been staring at.

"Jaden, I think he wanted us to say something about ourselves," Syrus said.

"Okay, how 'bout this? I'm starving," Jaden said with his mouth full.

Raisa grimaced when she saw that, but said nothing.

"He's walking over here," Syrus warned.

The purple-haired girl looked up to find the headmaster coming to a stop beside their table.

"I mean, he's…" Syrus trailed off.

"Well, since some of us can't wait," Banner said; there was a slight scolding note in his voice but Raisa could hear that his voice was mostly friendly, "let's eat!"

"All right," Jaden said and began eating again.

Raisa looked at her meal before she began eating. She was used to having a simple dinner every night; with her aunt being practically married to her job and her parents dead, Raisa practically raised herself. She taught herself how to cook but she saw no point in making a big, fancy meal when she was the only one who was going to eat it anyway.

When she was done, she left the meal hall and headed toward her dorm room, which was near the kitchen as that was the only room that was currently not occupied. Slipping into the room, Raisa sat down on her bed before lifting the locket into her hands; she opened it to gaze at the picture of her parents within it.

A tear rolled down her cheek, but Raisa wiped it away. Seven years had gone by since her parents were killed but she still missed them, and was still furious with the courts for letting the person who caused the accident go free, and she knew that she would always miss them. They had been so supportive of Raisa when she got into dueling and they had even given her the first deck she ever used. She knew that they would have been proud of her for getting into Duel Academy.

"I'll make you proud of me, Mom, Dad," she said softly to the picture, though she knew her parents couldn't hear her.

A _coo_ sounded and Kuribon, the other duel spirit that Raisa occasionally saw, appeared on her shoulder; Kuribon was a ball of fur with large eyes and a bow on her tail. She often appeared to Raisa whenever the purple-haired girl needed some comfort.

"I'm okay, Kuribon," she said before she pulled out her deck and began going through it. Classes started tomorrow and she was sure there were going to be duels but, even if there weren't, she wanted to be ready.

**. . .**

**A/n what do you think?**

**Blaze: well, that was chapter 2, which was beta-read before it was posted by EndlessNight025 as I said at the beginning**

**Darth: cool**

**Blaze: next chapter will come out after I've typed it up and EndlessNight025 has beta-read it. I was going to change it from canon but I decided it was too short to change it so, next chapter, instead you'll get a double duel (Jaden versus Chazz and Raisa versus Akio).**

**Darth: cool**

**Blaze: yup so please review and I will post chapter 3 as soon as I possibly can.**


	4. Chapter Three

**Thank you to **_**decode9**_**, **_**aegorm**_**, **_**Nightshadoe07**_**, and my beta-reader **_**EndlessNight025**_** for reviewing the last chapter. You guys are great; I hope that you enjoy this chapter and reviews, as always, are much appreciated.**

**Chapter Three**

Xander was sitting cross-legged on his bed, going through all of his cards when Sand Hound barked. He glanced toward the sand-colored canine with a frown. "What is it?" he asked, gathering his cards together before putting them back into his deck case and getting to his feet.

'_Your brother's out there,_' Sand Hound barked.

Xander frowned before walking over to the window in time to see Jaden and Syrus walking past the Ra dorm. _What kind of trouble are you getting into now, Jay?_ He thought. He had a feeling he already knew.

Leaving the Ra dorm, he broke into a run, managing to catch up with Jaden and Syrus right before they reached the Obelisk dueling arena. "Jay!" he called, causing Jaden to skid to a stop and glance toward him.

"What're you doing here, Xan?" he asked.

"Better question, what are you doing here?" Xander asked.

Jaden shrugged. "Chazz challenged me to a duel and ya know I ain't gonna back down from one," he said as he started walking again.

"I didn't think you would," Xander said, falling into step alongside his brother. "Wonder if he'll agree to a tag duel."

"That'd be sweet," Jaden said.

The two Slifers and one Ra entered the dueling arena to find Chazz standing there with his two friends on either side of him. All three of them had duel disks on their arms, naturally, as everyone walked around with their duel disks ready.

"Well, well, well, you should up, Slacker, and I see you brought your reject brother," Chazz said with a sneer.

Jaden didn't respond to that. He just grinned. "Of course. After that challenge you sent to my Duel Pilot, no way was I gonna miss this. Any way of making it a tag duel?" he said, leaping onto the dueling platform while Chazz walked over to the other end and Xander, Syrus and Chazz's two friends took up positions on the sidelines.

"Nope. Just you and me. Now, we'll see whether you beating Dr. Crowler was a fluke, or a fact. You're next, Ra reject," the Obelisk said, glancing at Xander who simply shrugged.

"Anytime, anyplace, Chazz," he replied.

"And we're also gonna find out something else too, like which one of us is going to be the next King of Games," Jaden said.

Chazz scoffed. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just be sure to get your best card ready to hand over after you lose," he said.

"Wait, you agreed to hand over your best card if you lose?" Xander echoed.

"Ah, I'm not going to lose," Jaden said with a shrug before looking at Chazz and adding, "You too, Chazz. Now game on!"

"Duel!"

**Chazz: 4000**

**Jaden: 4000**

Both of their duel disks turned on and they drew their five starting cards before Chazz, electing to go first, drew a card and said, "Alright, Slacker, I'll start by summoning Reborn Zombie in Defense Mode."

A zombie with white hair, a skeletal arm and a skeletal foot in a tattered cloak appeared on the field (A: 1000/D: 1600).

"And then I'll play a card facedown."

Jaden looked at the field before shrugging. "I guess that's one way to start a duel. But I'm gonna go a little bigger, so here goes," Jaden said, drawing his sixth card before looking at it and at his hand.

One of the cards in his hand was Winged Kuriboh and Jaden smiled when he heard a faint _coo_. _Maybe I'll use you later,_ he thought.

"Okay, first off, I'll play the spell card Polymerization and I'll fuse my Elemental Heroes Avian and Burstinatrix from my hand to summon the Elemental Hero Flame Wingman."

The green winged hero and the fiery red heroine appeared on the field before fusing together to form the red-and-green winged creature that defeated Crowler who landed on the field in Attack Mode (A: 2100/D: 1200).

Xander frowned as Chazz didn't look particularly concerned. _Looks like he has a plan,_ he thought.

"I told you I'd start big, didn't I?" Jaden said.

Chazz chuckled. "I was hoping you would," he said.

_Huh, I was right. He does have a plan,_ Xander thought, looking over at Jaden who looked confused but also faintly worried.

"Why's that?" he asked.

The black-haired Obelisk smirked. "Because that card I played before is a Trap Card that you set off! Chthonian Polymer, do your stuff," he ordered.

"What's Chthonian Polymer's…stuff?" Syrus asked meekly as Xander grimaced, not liking where this was going.

"It's a Trap that allows Chazz to take control of a Fusion Monster as long as he sacrifices one of his monsters," he explained.

"Oh, but Jaden just summoned a Fusion Monster!"

"I knew it! I had a feeling I'd find you guys here, though you're a surprise, Xander," Alexis said, walking over to join them.

"Alexis?" Syrus said, surprised.

"Xander's right about what that Trap Card does, though," Alexis added.

"I now sacrifice my Reborn Zombie to take control of your Wingman," Chazz said with a laugh as his monster exploded and Wingman disappeared on Jaden's side of the field to reappear on his. It seemed darker though and was exuding a darker aura.

"Ah man, my monster," Jaden protested.

"You're so predictable, Jaden," Chazz said with a shake of his head. "You wouldn't stop talking about this monster that day of the exams. I knew that you would use it soon."

"Still, since Wingman was a Special Summon, I'm allowed to summon another monster during my turn," he said. He looked at his cards while Chazz smirked.

_Go ahead. Summon another monster. I haven't forgotten Wingman's Special Ability,_ he thought.

"All right, I summon Elemental HERO Clayman in Defense Mode," Jaden finally decided, placing the card on his duel desk and the rock giant with a small, round red head appeared on the field (A: 800/D: 2000).

"Yeah, time to get knocked down. First, I summon Chthonian Soldier."

A soldier in purple-gray armor wielding a broad curved sword appeared on the field (A: 1200/D: 1400).

"Now, Flame Wingman, attack with Skydive Scorcher," Chazz ordered and Jaden shielded his face with his duel disk as Wingman destroyed Clayman. "And now, because of Flame Wingman's Special Ability, you lose Life Points equal to your monster's Attack Points."

Wingman attacked, causing Jaden to stagger back and Xander to wince.

**Chazz: 4000**

**Jaden: 3200**

"And don't think I'm done yet, slacker," Chazz added. "Chthonian Soldier, attack with Windstorm Slash."

The soldier shot forward before his broad, curved sword sliced through Jaden, causing him to fall to his knees.

**Chazz: 4000**

**Jaden: 2000**

"Are you starting to know your place here at the academy yet?" Chazz asked. "You may have been something back at home but, here in the big leagues, you are nothing more than an amateur, Slifer slime. I'll end my turn with a face down. Go ahead, slacker."

Jaden started chuckling and Xander smiled a little. That was just like his brother to not even be bothered by the fact that he had lost half of his Life Points already. That was one thing they had in common.

"What's the matter, baby?" Chazz sneered.

Jaden laughed again as he got to his feet. "This is too fun," he said.

"What?" Chazz sounded stunned.

"Just what I came for…the trash talking, the action, it's all so great," Jaden said.

"What the…?" Chazz began, surprised.

"I summon Elemental HERO Sparkman," Jaden said when his turn began before Chazz could finish his question and an armored blue-and-gold figure appeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1400). "Now, Sparkman, attack with Static Shockwave."

Chazz shielded himself as a surge of electricity slammed into Chthonian Soldier, destroying him.

**Chazz: 3600**

**Jaden: 2000**

Then, the curved blade that the soldier had been holding spun away from the cloud of smoke that had been created to strike at Jaden, causing him to wince in pain.

**Chazz: 3600**

**Jaden: 1600**

"Still think it's great, slacker? 'Cause when Chthonian Soldier is destroyed, the same amount of damage that was inflicted on my Life Points are now inflicted on yours," Chazz said. "As it is, you hardly have any to spare. It's just a matter of time, slacker. Your best card is about to be all mine."

"Don't count Jay out just yet, Chazz," Xander said, knowing full well that his brother could make a comeback if he had the right cards.

Chazz glared at him. "I didn't ask your opinion, Ra reject," he spat.

"He's such a lovely fellow," Xander muttered to Alexis and Syrus, who snickered.

"This isn't over yet," Jaden said, slipping a card into a Spell and Trap card slot. "I throw down a facedown."

"Play what you like," Chazz said, turning his gaze back to Jaden. "My next attack will finish off your Life Points and that attack is coming right now. Go, Flame Wingman."

Wingman was surrounded by flames as he prepared to attack.

"Not so fast. That was a Trap Card I just threw down," Jaden said, revealing the Trap and Xander grinned.

"Mirror Gate; nice job, Jay," Xander said. "Now you've got Wingman back."

"Looks like Jaden's still in this duel after all," Alexis said, watching as Flame Wingman and Sparkman switched places on the field before Flame Wingman destroyed Sparkman.

"No!" Chazz shouted.

**Chazz: 3100**

**Jaden: 1600**

"And, just as you told me a while ago, Wingman's Special Ability means you take damage equal to your destroyed monsters Attack Points," Jaden added.

Chazz cried out as Wingman's Special Ability knocked out more of his Life Points.

**Chazz: 1500**

**Jaden: 1600**

"All right," Syrus said.

"Nice moves, Jaden," Alexis said with a small smile.

Xander nodded in agreement.

"More like lucky moves, if you ask me, Slifer Scum," Chazz said, gritting his teeth. "All right, I activate Chthonian Blast. All right, now since you destroyed one of my monsters, I can destroy one of yours and you take damage equal to half of his Attack Points."

Jaden shielded his face as Flame Wingman was destroyed.

**Chazz: 1500**

**Jaden: 550**

"Now, I play the Trap Card Call of the Haunted. It lets me summon a monster from my graveyard to my field in Attack Mode. Go, Infernal Warrior. But he won't be staying here for long as I sacrifice him to summon Mefist the Infernal General," Chazz said as the warrior appeared only to vanish to be replaced by an armored figure riding a horned beast with red eyes that appeared on the field (A: 1800/D: 1700).

Jaden examined it. "Not bad," he said.

"Sweet monster," Xander added to which Jaden nodded in agreement.

"Not bad?" Chazz looked at him before he smiled a little, though it looked more mocking than anything. "You're something else, you know that, slacker? Acting confident and all…but your lousy monsters won't get you out of this jam."

Jaden looked at the Winged Kuriboh card in his hand and smiled at it. "I know he's wrong, Winged Kuriboh, because we both know that my monsters and I have a bond." He drew his next card and his smile widened when he saw what it was.

_He drew a good card,_ Xander thought.

Alexis suddenly started glancing toward the doors and Xander followed her gaze when the sound of people walking came to them. "Uh, guys," Alexis called. "We've got company. Campus security. If they find us in here then we'll get seriously busted."

"What?" Syrus exclaimed.

"Why? I mean we're all students here," Jaden said, confused.

"The rules say that there is no off-hour dueling in any arena," Alexis replied. "Chazz knows that but, let me guess, he didn't tell you."

"Come on, let's go," one of Chazz's friends called.

Chazz turned away from Jaden. "Well, well, slacker, looks like you lucked out this time and you too, reject," he said, gazing coolly at the twins.

"What are you talking about? The match isn't over," Jaden protested.

"Yeah, it is. I've seen all that I needed to see. You're a sorry duelist. You beating Dr. Crowler was a fluke," Chazz said, leaping off the platform and walking off with his friends.

"But…"

"Jay, we have to go," Xander said, leaping onto the platform before grabbing Jaden's arm and half-guiding, half-dragging Jaden away from the arena with Alexis and Syrus just behind them.

It was a close call but, thankfully, Alexis knew of a back way out of the arena. They arrived outside the main building and Alexis glanced toward the twins—Jaden was scowling—and Syrus.

"You sure are stubborn, aren't you?" she said.

"Yeah, he is," Xander said.

"Only about my dueling, and you are too, Xan," Jaden said.

"Anyway, thanks for showing us the back way out, Alexis," Syrus said.

"No problem. I'm just sorry you didn't get to finish your duel with Chazz, Jaden," the blonde Obelisk said.

Jaden shrugged. "It's okay. I can just picture how it would've ended anyway," he said.

"Oh?" Alexis raised her eyebrows. "From my point of view, it could have gone either way."

Jaden snorted. "No way. Not after I drew this." He held out the card and Xander grinned when he saw it; it was Monster Reborn.

"I thought you drew a good card before the duel was interrupted," he said.

Jaden nodded, grinning. "Well, catch ya later," he said to Alexis.

"Yeah, I'd better get back to my dorm too. See ya, Alexis," Xander said and the twins took off running.

"Wait up!" Syrus shouted, running after the twins.

Alexis watched them go with a faint smile on her face. _This is going to be one interesting year,_ she thought before she made her way back to her dorm.

**. . .**

Raisa was seated beside Jaden with Syrus on Jaden's other side. They were in their first class of the day—Dr. Crowler's—and Raisa noticed that the lecture hall seemed divided, with the Obelisks sitting up top and the Slifers sitting at the bottom while the Ras were in the middle.

"All right, everyone, settle down," Dr. Crowler said and everyone fell silent. "Listen up, because I won't repeat myself. I am your first teacher of the day, Dr. Vellian Crowler and I teach the different types of cards. Now, can anyone tell me the three types of cards in Duel Monsters and their categories? How about you, Miss Rhodes?"

Alexis nodded and stood up. "Duel Monster cards can be grouped into Normal, Effect, Ritual and Fusion. Trap and Spell Cards can also be monsters or summon Token Monsters. Trap Cards can be group into Normal, Continuous and Counter Traps. Spell Cards can be grouped into Normal, Quick-Play, Field, Continuous, Equip and Ritual."

"Perfect!" Crowler said. "Outstanding. Of course, I'd expect nothing less from one of my Obelisks."

"Yes, Dr. Crowler," Alexis replied before sitting back down.

"Hmm, now who shall we question next?" The doctor looked at the Slifers until he found someone. "You! Syrus Truesdale."

Syrus jumped in his seat.

"Explain to the class what a Field Spell is, please," Crowler said.

"Uh…a Field Spell is the thing that affects the thing," Syrus stuttered, clearly uncertain.

Raisa winced sympathetically.

"Even pre-duelers know the answer to this one, ya Slifer Slacker!" an Obelisk shouted, causing other Obelisks to laugh. The black-haired Obelisk that Raisa recognized as Chazz was smirking while his two friends were among those who were laughing. Alexis was shaking her head.

"Wait, I know this one," Syrus protested.

"Relax, Sy," Jaden said in an attempt to calm the boy down. "You totally got this one."

"I think not," Crowler interrupted. "Sit down."

Syrus sat down.

"Now, would someone else kindly tell me the answer? Preferably someone not in red, thank you."

That caused more Obelisks and a few Ras to laugh and Syrus to sink lower in his seat.

"I blew it; I made all the Slifers look bad," Syrus said, looking downcast.

"It wasn't your fault, Sy," Xander said, leaning forward to talk with the blue-haired boy.

"You know something, teach?" Jaden said. "You shouldn't be making fun of the Slifers. I mean, I'm a Slifer and I beat you, so when you make fun of the Reds, you're making fun of yourself."

Xander and the Slifers laughed and Alexis snickered while Crowler looked furious and was biting down on a handkerchief, most likely to stop himself from responding to that.

_That's it! I won't have this slacker in my school for another second!_ He thought, fuming. _I'll see to it that he's expelled from here permanently._

"I've gotta remember that for when he starts making fun of Ras," Xander said with a smirk.

Raisa chuckled a little.

Their next class was with Professor Banner.

"All right, class, as some of you may know, my name is Professor Lyman Banner," Banner greeted them. "I specialize in some of the lesser known tactics in the world of dueling; some that might be unnatural even for the experienced duelist."

"By the way, thanks, Jay," Syrus whispered to Jaden, who was jolted out of his doze when Xander smacked him in the head.

"Ow." Jaden glared at his brother, who smirked. Looking at Syrus, the brunette Slifer added, "No problem, Sy. For what?"

"For sticking up for me!" Syrus said too loudly and interrupting Banner mid-lecture.

Raisa watched as Banner glanced in their direction.

"Uh oh, I may have to do it again," Jaden said.

"Syrus?" Banner said.

Syrus stood up. "Uh yes?"

"Do me a favor and pick up Pharaoh, will you?"

"Uh, Pharaoh?"

"Unless you're thinking about minoring as a scratching post," Banner said with a smile.

Syrus looked confused but Raisa noticed the fat tabby she had first seen at the Slifer Welcome Dinner rubbing up against Syrus's legs.

Again, students began laughing and Syrus, blushing, picked up the cat before returning him to Banner.

**. . .**

In Crowler's office, Dr. Crowler was writing a letter with a white feather pen. "How dare that Slifer slacker Jaden make a mockery of me in front of my whole class like that? It will be the last mistake he'll ever make," he said, folding the letter before putting it inside an envelope. He then picked up a mirror and put red lipstick on his lips.* He kissed the back of the letter and chuckled to himself.

"The big kiss-off," he murmured before he ran out of his office and toward the boys' locker room, as that was Jaden's next class. He placed the letter in what he thought was Jaden's locker before he left as quickly as possible.

Syrus jogged into the locker room almost before Crowler left and made his way to the locker. "Lousy girl's gym," he muttered. "Why did they have to make the signs so small?" He walked over to his locker and spotted Jaden's shoes. Sighing, he said, "I see Jaden's still using my locker."

The letter chose that moment to fall out and Syrus frowned. "What's this?" he murmured before he picked up the letter and his eyes widened. "This isn't Jaden's. Somebody wrote me a letter."

He quickly ducked in between two lockers and opened the letter. "Wonder what this says?"

_From the moment I first set eyes on you, I've been in love with you. Meet me tonight in the back of the Obelisk Girl's Dormitory so I can give you a big kiss._

_Endearingly,_

_Alekis Rodes_

"This is better than what my mom writes me," Syrus exclaimed.

**. . .**

Raisa was on her way back to the Slifer Dorm after class that day, thinking about her newest assignment for Professor Crowler's class. She wanted to be sure to do good so that Crowler didn't have another reason to dislike Slifers, not that it would do any good but she could always try.

She was so deep in thought that she wasn't watching where she was going and ran into someone.

"Hey! Watch it, Slifer Slime!" The brown-haired Obelisk she had run into snapped, glaring at her.

"Sorry," Raisa said quietly, stepping back. She recognized the Obelisk as one of Chazz's friends; she had only learned his name in her last class, Akio Sato, and had learned that he was a big jerk like Chazz.

Akio curled his lip into a sneer. "I don't even know how you managed to get into the academy, slacker," he sneered before he arrogantly added, "I could beat you in a turn, easy, slacker. I think I'll do just that and send ya crying home to mama. So what's it gonna be, Slifer scum?"

'_I say duel and beat him,_' Ma'at said, appearing next to Raisa.

Kuribon _coo_ed in agreement, appearing on Raisa's shoulder.

"What? Ya scared? Little baby Slifer gonna run home 'cause she knows I'm better than she'll ever be?" Akio sneered. "You and your pathetic deck don't stand a chance against me!"

_My deck is not pathetic,_ Raisa thought. "You're on," she said activating her duel disk and slipping her deck into its slot.

Akio smirked, activating his own duel disk.

"Duel!"

**Akio: 4000**

**Raisa: 4000**

"As I'm your better, I get to go first," Akio said, drawing his sixth card. "I summon Marauding Captain to my field in Attack Mode."

He placed the card on his duel disk and a blond soldier in armor with two swords in his hand, one wider than the other, appeared on the field (A: 1200/D: 400).

"Then I'll activate his Special Ability to summon another Level Four or below monster from my hand to the field and I choose Command Knight but I will put her in Defense Mode."

A blonde female warrior in red and gold armor appeared on the field, holding a defensive position (A: 1200/D: 1900).

"And another note, Command Knight gives an extra 400 Attack Points to every warrior-type monster that I control," Akio added as both his Marauding Captain and Command Knight grew stronger (MC A: 1200-1600/D: 400, CK A: 1200-1600/D: 1900).

"Next, I place one card face down and that's it," Akio added, slipping the card into one of the Spell/Trap slots.

"My turn," Raisa said, drawing her sixth card before looking at them. "First of all, I summon Jain, Lightsworn Paladin to the field in Attack Mode," Raisa added, placing the card on her disk and a white-haired warrior in silver-and-gold armor with a shield on one arm and a sword in the other hand appeared on the field (A: 1800/D: 1200). "And now, Jain, Lightsworn Paladin, attack Marauding Captain. Light Strike Slash, and after she attacks, she gains 300 Attack Points."

Akio shielded his face as his Marauding Captain was destroyed. "That doesn't matter because I activate my trap card, Desperate Tag. When a monster in Attack Mode is destroyed, all battle damage done to me goes to zero and I can summon a level 4 or below Warrior-type monster to my field and I choose Big Shield Gardna in defense mode. Better luck next time, slacker," he said and an armored warrior with dark hair appeared on the field, kneeling down with his shield in front of him (A: 100-500/D: 2600).

Raisa ignored that. "Since Jain's on the field, I have to send the top two cards of my deck to the Graveyard," she said sending her top two cards, which were Garoth, Lightsworn Warrior and Monster Reincarnation, to the graveyard. "I'll now place one card face down and that's it."

"Pathetic," Akio said with a sneer, drawing a card. "I activate Pot of Greed to draw two more cards." He did so before adding, "I'll end with one facedown. Your move, slacker."

_That's it? Must be a trap,_ Raisa thought as she drew another card. "First off, I'm activating the spell card Solar Recharge," she said. "Now, after discarding one of my cards to the graveyard, I can draw two cards but I have to send the top two cards on my deck to the graveyard as well." She discarded Wulf, Lightsworn Beast as well as her deck's top two cards—Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner and Shadow Spell—to the graveyard, giving her a total of three Lightsworn monsters in there.

_Just one more, _she thought.

"Now, Jain, Lightsworn Paladin, attack Command Knight with Light Strike Slash. And like I said before, she gains 300 Attack Points after she attacks," she added but Akio just smirked.

"I do remember that, slacker, but I have my face down. I activate my Trap Card, Mirror Force," he said. "Now, not only is your attack stopped but your monster is destroyed."

"Normally, yeah," Raisa said, "but you forgot about my Trap; Royal Decree. Now, all other Trap Card effects are negated."

Akio gritted his teeth as Command Knight was destroyed and his life points took a hit.

**Akio: ****3500**

**Raisa: 4000**

"I send the top two cards of my deck because of Jain's effect and end my turn," Raisa said.

Akio drew a card, glaring at her. "I activate the spell card Monster Reborn to bring back my Marauding Captain," he said, holding out a card that had already been in his hand before that turn began and, a moment later, his Marauding Captain reappeared on the field (A: 1200/D: 400). "But that's not all. Now I activate the Equip Spell United We Stand and equip it on to Marauding Captain giving him 800 extra Attack and Defense Points for every face-up monster I control, which are currently three. This gives my Captain an extra 2400 Attack and Defense Points. I'm also switching my Big Shield Gardna to attack mode."

Marauding Captain was surrounded by a light as both his Attack and Defense Points increased (A: 1600-4000/D: 400-2800) while Big Shield Gardna stood up holding his weapon in front of him. "Now, Marauding Captain, attack her Paladin," Akio commanded and Raisa shielded her face as her monster was destroyed, putting total number of Lightsworn monsters in her Graveyard to four, which was exactly what she needed.

**Akio: 3500**

**Raisa: 1800**

_Thank you for that,_ she thought.

"And now, Big Shield Gardna, attack her directly," Akio ordered and Raisa cried out as Gardna struck her with his

**Akio: ****3500**

**Raisa:**** 1700**

"Your move, unless you ready to give in and go crying to mama," Akio sneered. "I told you that you and your pathetic deck couldn't beat me."

"My deck is not pathetic," Raisa snapped angrily, practically yanking her next card out of her deck. "And I'll prove. You helped me to secure my win because, thanks to you, I now have four different Lightsworn monsters in my graveyard."

"Yeah, yeah, so what?" Akio said impatiently.

"So this," the purple-haired Slifer said, "When I have four different Lightsworn monsters in my Graveyard, I am allowed to Special Summon this card; my Judgment Dragon!"

She placed the card on her disk as a beautiful ice-blue dragon with red eyes and red claws appeared on the field with wings outstretched (A: 3000/D: 2600).

"So what?" Akio sneered. "Your dragon still ain't strong enough to beat my Marauding Captain."

"That may be, but he has a Special Ability, one that's going to win this duel for me," Raisa said. "If I give up 1000 Life Points, every single card on the field—except for Judgment Dragon—is destroyed."

**Akio: 3500**

**Raisa: 700**

"What?!" Akio screamed, watching as Judgment Dragon unleashed a stream of energy that destroyed every single monster, Spell and Trap card on the field.

"Now that that's taken care of, I think I'll summon Ehren, Lightsworn Monk to the field." She placed the card on her disk and the dark-skinned woman with two ponytails dressed in white and gold armor with a staff in her hands appeared on the field ready to attack (A: 1600/D: 1000)." And, since Judgment Dragon still has his attack, I'll use it now. Go, Judgment Dragon, attack him directly—Justice Blast!" Raisa commanded and Judgment Dragon roared before unleashing a stream of bright blue energy that slammed straight into Akio knocking him backwards.

**Akio: 500**

**Raisa: 700**

"Now, I'm going to end this duel right here and right now," Raisa added. "Now, Ehren, attack him directly and end this duel, Light Strike Kick," Her monk nodded before leaping into the air and slamming her heel into Akio's face knocking him down and knocking out the rest of his life points.

**Akio: 0**

**Raisa: 700 WINNER**

Akio pushed himself to his feet glaring at the purple-haired Slifer before he stalked off muttering, "How the heck could I lose to a Slifer slacker?"

'_He's such a sore loser_,' Ma'at said.

_That he is,_ Raisa thought.

"Sweet duel."

Raisa jumped before turning around to find Xander leaning against the stone structure. Her duel with Akio had occurred in the courtyard outside the main building, so she shouldn't have been too surprised it had attracted attention.

"Sorry," Xander said, straightening up. "Didn't mean to scare ya."

"It's okay," Raisa said, suddenly feeling shy. She always acted different when she dueled, especially when someone insulted her or her cards. "And thanks."

That sand-colored duel spirit that Ma'at had pointed out to Raisa when they first arrived on Academy Island appeared next to Xander and barked. Xander glanced at the spirit before looking toward Ma'at, who was still at Raisa's side. He looked surprised and curious at the same time.

"You can see her, can't you?" Raisa asked softly.

Xander nodded. "I thought me and my brother were the only ones," he admitted.

"Your brother can see duel spirits too?"

"He's starting to, anyway. Well, I've gotta go. Jaden's gonna be so upset that he didn't get to see such a sweet duel but I'm gonna have fun describing it to him. I'll see ya later," Xander said.

"See ya," Raisa said softly, watching the Ra jog away in the direction of the Slifer Dorm. She walked in that same direction at a steadier pace.

**. . .**

Later that day, Syrus made his way to the Obelisk Blue Girl's Dormitory, a happy grin on his face as he went to meet Alexis.

He didn't see a certain professor dressed in a tight, black bodysuit* who was hiding in a bush, watching and waiting for a completely different person to show up.

_This is perfect. Thanks to that faux love letter I wrote, _the Obelisk Headmaster thought going over the plan._ I'll just wait here for Jaden to come around while he searches for Alexis. And, when the time's right, I'll snap a picture of him, creating evidence that will get him expelled._

Naturally, he would have to rethink his plans when he saw that Jaden hadn't showed up; another Slifer had.

"Alexis!" Syrus called out.

"That's not Jaden. It's that Field Spell nitwit," Crowler shouted, alerting the girls in the area.

"What's a boy doing here?" a girl cried.

"I'm not a boy, I'm a man," Crowler protested before deciding to beat a hasty retreat, hoping the girls hadn't spotted him as he dived clumsily into the lake.

Poor Syrus wasn't so lucky.

"A love letter from Alexis?" Mindy—a black-haired Obelisk girl with brown eyes—said incredulously. She, Jasmine—a brown-haired Obelisk girl—and Alexis were standing around her.

"Just ask her, it's true," Syrus said, winking at Alexis.

"Uh, hello, Alexis is really tall and skilled at dueling and really hot and you're really short and an amateur."

"But it's true. Just read it," Syrus protested, pulling out the letter.

Alexis took it before she and the other girls read it.

"Syrus, my name isn't even spelled right," she said.

"So you don't love me?"

All three girls groaned in response.

"Hey, hold on," Jasmine said, suddenly looking at the front of the envelope. "This note's addressed to Jaden Yuki."

"Aw, I can't even get a fake love letter?" the little Slifer complained.

"Sorry, Syrus," Alexis said. "Guess we have no reason to keep you here."

"Hold on, he could've written the note as an excuse to come here," Jasmine protested.

"Girls, just what is going on down there?"

The girls looked up as Miss Fontaine—Headmistress of Obelisk Blue—looked over the balcony at them. Jasmine and Mindy hid Syrus so that she wouldn't see the Slifer as well.

"All right, what's going on?" Fontaine asked.

"Sorry about the noise, Miss. Fontaine," Alexis said to the red-haired Headmistress. "We'll be sure to keep the noise down."

"Well, I hope so. It's nearly Midnight," Fontaine said. "And I have Pilates in the morning."

She headed back to her room and, as soon as the girls were sure their headmistress was asleep, turned their attention back to Syrus.

"So, what now?" Jasmine asked.

"I'll tell you what now, girls," Alexis said, smirking. "We'll use Syrus as bait to get Jaden over here."

"What for?" Mindy asked.

"Remember what we were discussing earlier?" Alexis asked. "We're gonna find out just how good Jaden really is."

_I'll figure out how good Xander is at another time__,__as it would be too risky getting both of them here at once,_ she thought.

**. . .**

***All I can say to this is**_** what the heck is wrong with this guy?!**_

**A/n what do you think?**

**Blaze: well, a HUGE thank you to EndlessNight025 and, any mistakes (technical or otherwise) that remain are mine and I'm sorry for them**

**Darth: awesome so what's going to happen next?**

**Blaze: Jaden versus Alexis and, if that duel isn't that long, Xander versus Alexis. YAY! I get to use the Star Force cards again! WOOHOO**

**Darth: (chuckles) you're excited about that**

**Blaze: duh. So please review and I will post chapter 4 as soon as I can but, since I'm going to take a bit of a break and start working on my other stories (mainly my **_**Harry Potter**_** fanfic **_**Fire and Ice**_** as well as my **_**Star Wars**_** fanfics **_**Castle of Glass**_** and**_** Shards of Darkness**_** and my **_**Danny Phantom **_**fic **_**Under the Overcast Sky**_**) since it's been a while since I've updated them.**


	5. Chapter Four

**Thank you to **_**IfTimeWasStill**_**, **_**Nightshade07**_** and **_**decode9**_** for reviewing the last chapter. You guys are the greatest. Here's the long awaited Jaden/Alexis and Xander/Alexis duels. I hope I didn't disappoint and thank you to my beta-reader EndlessNight025 for her help on this chapter. Also, **_**IfTimeWasStill**_**, your OC will make an appearance next chapter. I hope you enjoy this chapter and reviews, as always, are much appreciated.**

**Note (May 6, 2014): Fixed the mistakes that my beta-reader caught on this chapter. Hope I got all of them.**

**Chapter Four**

Jaden, after receiving a message from a mysterious person telling him that Syrus was being held hostage and to meet them at the Obelisk Blue Girls Dormitory, was on his way to the dorm, wondering what had happened and why Syrus was there anyway. He walked along the shore, heading toward the girl's dorm to find Alexis standing there with her friends Jasmine and Mindy in uniform while Syrus was tied up on the ground next to them.

"Hi, Jaden," Syrus said glumly.

"Hey, so what's going on here?" Jaden asked, coming to a stop in front of the group.

"Well, to make the long story short, I'm a complete loser," Syrus replied.

"Your friend here trespassed on the girls' campus," Jasmine said.

"I told you, it wasn't like that," Syrus objected.

"Now that you're here, you're trespassing too," Mindy said, ignoring Syrus.

"That's right, so if you wanna win your freedom, you'll have to beat me in a duel," Alexis said, "or else we'll turn you in."

"We'll be expelled if you turn us in," Syrus protested.

"That's not gonna happen, Syrus. You've got yourself a deal, Alexis. Let's throw down."

It was decided that the duel would take place on the lake, by which the dorm was. There were two boats facing each other with Jasmine, Mindy and Alexis in one and Jaden and Syrus—who was no longer tied up—in the other.

Unnoticed by the others, Crowler was treading the water nearby having come out of the water after realizing the girls hadn't spotted him. He was out of sight of the girls but close enough to hear and see the duel. "How exciting, a Slifer versus an Obelisk. Put him in his place, Alexis," he said.

"Duel," Jaden and Alexis declared, drawing their opening hands.

**Alexis: 4000**

**Jaden: 4000**

Alexis drew her sixth card before holding out one card. "Etoile Cyber, rise," she said, placing the card on her disk and a red-haired ballerina in an orange leotard spun onto the field (A: 1200/D: 1600). "I'm also playing one card face-down."

"Time to throw down," Jaden said, drawing his sixth card before looking at it. "Sweet. I'm going to summon Elemental Hero Sparkman." He placed the card down and the blue-and-gold armored hero appeared on the lake in front of him (A: 1600/D: 1400). "And next I'm going to have him attack your Etoile Cyber with Static Shockwave."

The hero sent a series of lightning bolts toward the ballerina but they stopped when Alexis revealed her face down.

"Hold it right there. I'm activating the Trap Card, Doble Passé," she said and the lightning strikes bypassed Etoile Cyber before striking Alexis directly.

**Alexis: 2400**

**Jaden: 4000**

"Doble Passé turns your attack on my monster into a direct attack on me," Alexis said. "And now my Etoile Cyber that you were just about to attack gets to wage a direct attack on you. Oh, and when Etoile Cyber attacks someone directly, her Attack Points go up by 600."

The ballerina danced across the field as her attack points went up (A: 1200-1800/D: 1600).

"Oh great," Jaden groaned before wincing when Etoile Cyber landed a round house kick into Jaden's ribs.

**Alexis: 2400**

**Jaden: 2200**

"Jaden," Syrus gasped.

"That Alexis is something else," Jaden commented. "Sacrificing her own life points just so she can attack mine."

"So are you impressed?" Alexis asked.

"Impressed? I think I'm in love," Jaden said, smirking to show he was only kidding.

"You're sweet. Too bad I have to crush you." Alexis drew a card before adding, "I'm going to summon Blade Skater in Attack Mode."

A bald, gray-skinned woman appeared on the field with ice skates on each wrist (A: 1400/D: 1500).

"And then I'm going to play the spell card Polymerization to fuse Etoile Cyber and Blade Skater together to form Cyber Blader."

Etoile Cyber and Blade Skater merged to create a woman with long dark hair dressed in a red and blue leotard with a red visor over her eyes (A: 2100/D: 800).

"Now, Cyber Blader, attack Sparkman with Whirlwind Rage," Alexis ordered and Cyber Blader went into a spin as she attacked Sparkman, a foot lashing out to connect with the hero and destroying him.

**Alexis: 2400**

**Jaden: 1700**

"Well, so much for Sparkman," Jaden murmured

Alexis's friends cheered. "Way to go, Alexis," Mindy said.

"I knew this guy beating Dr. Crowler was just luck," Jasmine commented.

"Well, I'll be happy to prove you wrong," Jaden said, drawing a card. "First, I'm going to play the Field Spell, Fusion Gate." He placed the Field Spell in the Field Spell slot and a dark storm seemed to appear above them. "With this, I can summon Fusion Monsters without a Polymerization card." He held out his Avian and Burstinatrix before stashing them away. "So, first, I'll summon this one; Elemental Hero Flame Wingman."

The red-and-green monster appeared on the field as if it had been Normal Summoned, though it hadn't (A: 2100/D: 1200).

"Okay, looks like it's going to be one Fusion Monster against another," Alexis said, a confident smile on her face. "Although, since they have the same number of Attack Points, they'll both be destroyed."

"Not after I play this Spell, Kishido Spirit," Jaden said, placing the card on his disk and a white ring appeared through the water before disappearing. "Now, Flame Wingman can take down any monster with the same number of Attack Points and not be destroyed. And thanks to his super power, when he destroys your Blader, you take damage equal to her Attack Points. Now go, Wingman, and attack Cyber Blader."

"Someone hasn't done his homework," Alexis murmured as Flame Wingman's dragon arm blasted Cyber Blader with a fireball. Unfortunately, when the smoke cleared, Cyber Blader remained on the field.

"How was she able to withstand my Wingman's attack?" Jaden asked, confused.

"Simple, Cyber Blader has a Special Ability. She can't be destroyed by an opponent with only one monster," Alexis said.

"But that would mean…"

"That neither of us loses Life Points."

Jaden chuckled a little. "Well, I guess you got me. Maybe I should take Xan's advice and study a bit more," he mused thoughtfully.

"That's never gonna happen," Syrus said.

Alexis's lips quirked into the beginnings of a smile before she said, "When I get you, Jaden, you'll know it." She drew her next card. "Like now, for example, I equip the Spell Card Fusion Weapon to my Cyber Blader, giving her 1500 Attack and Defense." Cyber Blader's hand was transformed into a tri-pronged blaster (A: 2100-3600/D: 800-2300).

"Uh oh. You might wanna brace yourself for this one, Sy ol' buddy," Jaden said to Syrus.

"Go, Blader, attack Flame Wingman with Trident Shock," Alexis ordered and a spiral-shaped lightning blast erupted from the blaster to slam into Flame Wingman; Jaden covered his face at the shockwave the explosion created.

**Alexis: 2400**

**Jaden: 200**

"Uh oh. Your Life Points are looking a little low," Alexis said with a teasing smile. "I hope you boys haven't unpacked yet."

"That's right," Mindy said with a smirk, "because once she wins, both of you are going to be expelled."

"We are?" Syrus asked, afraid.

"Don't worry, Sy, that's not gonna happen, promise," Jaden said reassuringly.

_You shouldn't make promises you can't deliver, Jaden,_ Alexis thought.

_I hope I'm not making a promise I can't deliver,_ Jaden thought. _The only card I have out is Fusion Gate, but there's still a chance I can win. It all depends on what I draw next._ "Here goes," Jaden said as he drew a card and grinned; it was Monster Reborn.

"Perfect," he said.

Alexis looked startled.

"I play the Elemental Hero Clayman in Attack Mode, rise up," Jaden said and the large, stone hero appeared, ready to attack (A: 800/D: 2000). "Now I play Monster Reborn so come on back, Elemental Hero Sparkman." The blue-and-gold armored hero reappeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1400).

"What differences will they make?" Alexis asked. "My Cyber Blader has way more Attack Points than either of them."

"Not separately, but with Fusion Gate's Special Ability, I can summon someone who can; Elemental Hero Thunder Giant, come out."

A vortex was created as Sparkman and Clayman merged and a large golden warrior with an orb in its chest that crackled with electricity appeared in their place (A: 2400/D: 1600).

"Hate to break it to you, but my Cyber Blader still has more Attack Points at 3600," Alexis said.

"I know, I know," Jaden said, not at all concerned by that. "But one of Thunder Giant's Special Abilities is that he can destroy any monster whose original Attack Points are less than his own."

"Wait, original Attack Points?"

"That's right. Attack Points without any kind of enhancement."

"But, before I played Fusion Weapon, her Attack Points were just 2100."

_I'm in trouble,_ she thought.

"That's right, and that's lower than my Thunder Giant's, which means your Blader is automatically destroyed." Thunder Giant fired a few bolts of lightning at Cyber Blader destroying her.

"And you know what the best part is, Alexis?" Jaden asked. "I still have his attack to use on you. Voltic Thunder!" Bolts of lightning erupted from Thunder Giant's hands and converged to strike directly at Alexis.

**Alexis: 0**

**Jaden: 200 WINNER**

Mindy and Jasmine looked stunned, Syrus cheered and Jaden gave Alexis his two finger salute. "That's game," he said.

A few minutes later, the two boats drew up alongside each other.

"Well, you know the rules I win so we get off free," Jaden said.

"All right, all right, we'll keep quiet about this," Alexis said.

"If you ask me, we should turn all of them in anyway," Jasmine said.

"Well, nobody asked you," Alexis snapped before she glanced at the two Slifers. "Oh and, Jaden, tell your brother I want to duel him next."

"Will do. Can't wait to tell him about this duel. I'm still upset that I missed a sweet duel between Raisa and that Obelisk kid," Jaden said.

"I heard about that. Akio would not stop complaining about losing to a Slifer," Alexis commented. "All right, you two, go on and get out of here."

"Sure," Jaden said. He fell silent for a moment before adding, "You know, you're a really strong player, Alexis."

"You think so?" Alexis looked surprised by the compliment.

"That's right. And if there's one thing I like more than anything else, it's dueling strong players," Jaden said. "Well, see ya around." Without another word, the two Slifers began rowing away from the three Obelisk girls.

Alexis watched them go. _Even if I did win, there's no way I could turn them in,_ she thought. _This school is a lot more interesting—and fun—with them than without._

Still unnoticed by the girls, Crowler growled. "Lucky brat," he hissed. "But I'll find a way to expel him yet, just as soon as I find a way home."

**. . .**

"You dueled and beat Alexis?" Xander exclaimed the following morning as the two Slifers—Syrus was with them—and two Ras—Bastion was with them—made their way to their first class.

"Yup, last night," Jaden said.

"Good thing he won. Otherwise we'd have been expelled," Syrus put in.

"Expelled?!" Xander folded his arms across his chest. "And why would that have happened?"

"Hey, I was just being a good friend and getting Sy out of a jam," Jaden said with a shrug. "Oh, and you're not Mom, so don't even think about trying to lecture me."

"You'd ignore it anyway, so there's no point," Xander said with a snort. "But, come on, tell me. How'd the duel go?"

Jaden grinned and immediately began recounting the duel in explicit detail, the same way Xander had described Raisa and Akio's duel the day before. They walked into the main building as Jaden talked and were outside their first class when Jaden finished.

"I've gotta duel this girl now," Xander said with a grin.

"She wants to duel you too, Xan," Jaden said. "She told me to tell ya that."

"Sweet! I haven't had a duel since I beat Crowler. I'm gonna find her after class."

**. . .**

Crowler watched the Yuki twins, Bastion and that nitwit Truesdale, with thinly veiled contempt directed at the Yuki twins. Xander wasn't a slacker like his brother—Crowler knew that based on the assignments that he actually turned in for his class, that his brother often failed to turn in, and the grades he was receiving in his other classes—but the only reason he got into Ra was because of his high written test score. He was still an amateur when it came to dueling and Crowler was determined to prove that, as soon as he got the younger twin Jaden expelled.

He found it frustrating that he couldn't get one measly little Slifer expelled despite all that he had tried to do.

_I'll try again during the tests next week. If he fails that test then he'll get expelled for sure,_ Crowler thought as he began class while thinking about whom to put Jaden against and how to ensure the Slifer didn't win.

**. . .**

Xander spotted Alexis talking with her friends as he made his way out of the main building with Jaden, Syrus and Bastion. Classes were over for the day and Xander was looking forward to finally being able to duel and to duel a strong opponent. "Hey Alexis," he called.

Her friends glanced toward him before they narrowed their eyes. "What do you want?" Jasmine asked.

"Jay said you wanted to duel me, Alexis," Xander said with a shrug. "What do ya say about right now?"

Alexis smiled at the older twin's enthusiasm that reminded her of Jaden. _Well, they are twins,_ she thought.

"All right, I have nothing better to do right now," she said and Jasmine and Mindy stepped away as she moved forward to stand across from Xander, activating her duel disk and Xander followed suit.

"This is gonna be a good duel," Jaden said, grinning.

"I am looking forward to see more of Xander's Star Force cards," Bastion admitted.

"Duel!" Xander and Alexis declared, drawing their first five cards.

**Alexis: 4000**

**Xander: 4000**

"Ladies first," Alexis said, drawing her sixth card. "And I summon Cyber Tutu to the field in Attack Mode." A moment later, a pink-haired girl dressed in a red and pale-blue leotard with a blue tutu and a pale-blue visor over her eyes appeared on the field (A: 1000/D: 800).

"And I'll end my turn with one face down," Alexis added, placing a card face down on her field.

"All right, my draw," Xander said, drawing a card before looking at it and at what he had in his other hand. "And I'm summoning Star Force Cloud Snake to my field in Defense Mode." The long white snake with a smooth silver carapace appeared coiled on his field (A: 400/D: 200).

"Then I'll place two cards face down and that's it," Xander added, slipping the card into his Spell/Trap Card Zone.

"Interesting first move," Bastion commented. "Since Cloud Snake's Attack Points are less than Cyber Tutu, Tutu can't use its Special Ability, but that means Cyber Tutu can still attack and destroy it."

Alexis smiled as she drew a card. "Well, let's see what happens. Cyber Tutu, attack his Cloud Snake now," she ordered and her Cyber Tutu spun across the field toward the snake.

"I activate my Trap Card, Star Lightning Burst," Xander said, revealing one of the Trap Cards he had set during his turn. "If a monster with higher Attack Points attacks a Star Force monster, it's automatically destroyed and you take damage equal to its level multiplied by one hundred."

"A pretty nice Trap," Alexis said, "but I have this. I activate my face down Hallowed Life Barrier. Now, by discarding one card from my hand, any damage that I would've taken because of your card becomes zero."

"Your monster's still destroyed," Xander said, watching as a bolt of lightning erupted from the sky and struck Tutu, causing her to shatter and Alexis to shield her face with her duel disk.

"Still my turn, though," Alexis said, lowering her disk, "and I'm summoning my Cyber Gymnast in Defense Mode." She placed the card on her disk and a muscular woman with a silvery mask on her face dressed in a blue bodysuit with long blonde hair in a ponytail appeared on the field, holding a defensive position (A: 800/D: 1800). "I'll end my turn with one face down."

_Wonder what she's planning,_ Xander thought as he drew another card. "I'm starting my turn by playing Pot of Greed to draw two cards," he said before drawing two cards. "And then I'm playing the Spell Card, Polymerization!"

"He has Fusion Monsters in his deck too?" Syrus asked.

"Only a few," Jaden admitted.

"I'm fusing my Star Force Dark Guardian and my Star Force Dark Consular in my hand to summon my Star Force Dark Sentinel in Attack Mode," Xander declared as his two monsters—an armored man with a round silver-and-black shield on his arm and a short sword in his hand and a robed woman carrying two swords—merged together to be replaced by a slender woman in black armor with tight black pants, black boots and a silver-lined hooded black cloak wielding a sword in her right hand (A: 2800/D: 2300).

"And I activate her special ability as well. I can select one monster on your field and negate its effect until the End Phase of your next turn and I choose your Cyber Gymnast," Xander added and Alexis gritted her teeth but nodded.

"Now, Sentinel, attack her Gymnast with Dark Force Slash," Xander ordered and his Sentinel dashed across the field, lifting her sword to attack.

"I activate my face down, Negate Attack, to cancel your attack and end the battle phase," Alexis said, revealing the Trap Card and a shield appeared around them that Sentinel bounced off before returning to Xander's side of the field.

"Ah well, you win some, you lose some," Xander said with a shrug. "I place one card face down and that's it."

"My draw," Alexis said, drawing a card. "And, first off, I activate Monster Reborn to bring back Cyber Tutu in Attack Mode." A moment after she placed the card on her disk, the pink-haired woman reappeared on the field (A: 1000/D: 800).

"And now I equip her with Angel Wing," Alexis added and her Cyber Tutu gained wings. "But first, Cyber Gymnast attack Cloud Snake." Cyber Gymnast flipped forward before landing a kick that destroyed Cloud Snake,

"Now, I activate Cyber Tutu's Special Ability. Since your monster has more Attack Points, she can attack you directly. Plus, because of Angel Wing, you lose an extra 300 life points. Attack, Cyber Tutu, Pounding Pirouette."

Xander braced himself as Cyber Tutu danced across the field and landed a roundhouse kick to Xander's jaw that sent him back a few steps.

**Alexis: 4000**

**Xander: 2700**

"Nice one, Alexis," Jasmine said.

Alexis smiled. "I'll end my turn now," she said.

"My draw then," Xander said, drawing a card. "And I summon Star Force Sand Hound to my field in defense mode." The sand-colored canine appeared on the field before sitting on his haunches tongue lolling out (A: 600/D: 300).

"Now, Dark Sentinel, attack Cyber Tutu with Dark Force Slash," Xander ordered.

Alexis winced as Sentinel cut through Cyber Tutu, destroying her.

**Alexis: 2200**

**Xander: 2700**

"When Angel Wing is destroyed, I'm allowed to draw one card," she said, drawing a card.

"I'll place one card face down and end my turn now," Xander said.

"All right, my draw," Alexis said, drawing another card. "First off, I'm switching my Cyber Gymnast to attack mode." She paused as her Cyber Gymnast stood up looking ready to attack. "Then I play Pot of Greed to draw two more cards." She drew two more cards before adding, "And I activate the spell card Polymerization to fuse Etoile Cyber and Blade Skater in my hand to summon Cyber Blader to my field in Attack Mode."

A moment later, a vortex appeared as Etoile Cyber and Blade Skater fused together to create the dark-blue haired woman in the purple-and-red leotard with a red visor over her eyes (A: 2100/D: 800).

"Now, Cyber Blader's Special Ability depends on the number of monsters on your field," Alexis said. "And since you currently have two, her Attack Points are doubled." Cyber Blader prepared herself to attack as her power increased (A: 2100-4200/D: 800).

"Oh boy, this isn't good," Xander murmured.

"No, it isn't," Alexis said. "Cyber Blader, attack Sentinel, Whirlwind Rage." Cyber Blader spun toward Sentinel before a foot lashed out, connecting with her and destroying her.

**Alexis: 2200**

**Xander: 1300**

"I'll end my turn now," Alexis said once Sentinel was destroyed.

Xander drew a card. "I'm starting off my turn by activating my Trap Card, Call of the Haunted to bring back Star Force Dark Guardian in Attack Mode," he said, pressing a button on his disk to reveal the Trap Card before the armored form of his guardian appeared with his shield on one arm and a short sword held in the other (A: 1800/D: 1200).

"And, with my Normal Summon, I summon Star Force Shadow Apprentice to my field in Defense Mode," Xander added and the silver-haired woman appeared, kneeling down with her dagger pointed downward (A: 1600/D: 1000).

"I'll end my turn with that," Xander added.

"Well, he's holding his own against Alexis," Jasmine commented.

"With those monsters on his field, Alexis has this duel won," Mindy said with a snort.

Alexis drew a card. "Well, it's been fun Xander but time for this duel to end. First off, now that Sentinel's no longer on the field, I'm using my Cyber Gymnast's Special Ability to destroy Shadow Apprentice." Xander winced as his Shadow Apprentice was destroyed by the Gymnast's kick.

"Now that you have only one monster on the field, Cyber Blader can't be destroyed in battle. Now, Cyber Blader, attack Dark Guardian, Whirlwind Rage," she ordered and the Blader moved forward to attack only for her foot to stop when it came into contact with the guardian's shield.

"What? Why didn't my attack go through?" Alexis asked, confused.

"Dark Guardian's Special Ability," Xander said. "Once per turn, he can negate an attacking monster's attack so long as the attacking monster's original Attack Points are greater than the target's."

Alexis's lips thinned. "I place one card face down and end my turn," she said.

"My draw," Xander said, drawing before he pointed to Cyber Gymnast. "Dark Guardian, attack Cyber Gymnast with slash-and-bash attack."

Dark Guardian leapt into the air before flying toward Cyber Gymnast.

"I activate my Trap Card, Doble Passé. Now I take the damage and my monster is spared," Alexis said before wincing when Dark Guardian's sword thrust through her and his shield smacked her in the face.

**Alexis: 400**

**Xander: 1300**

"And now my Cyber Gymnast deals you damage equal to her Attack Points," Alexis said before Cyber Gymnast flipped forward and struck Xander, sending him skidding backwards.

**Alexis: 400**

**Xander: 500**

"Way to go, Alexis! You're one move away from beating him!" Jasmine exclaimed.

"Uh, you do have a plan, don't ya Xan?" Jaden asked.

Xander just smiled. "I end my turn," he said.

"My draw," Alexis said, drawing a card before she smiled. "Well, you put up a good fight Xander but it's over. First off, by discarding one card from my hand, Cyber Gymnast can now destroy your Dark Guardian. Go!"

Xander simply watched as Cyber Gymnast flipped forward and landed an attack into Guardian destroying him, leaving Xander wide open.

"And now, Cyber Blader, attack Xander directly and end this duel," Alexis ordered and Cyber Blader spun forward.

"And I activate my Trap Card, Starlight Barrier," Xander declared, revealing his face down.

"Yes! Xan won!" Jaden shouted.

"What does Starlight Barrier do?" Syrus asked.

Xander smiled. "If my Life Points are less than 1000 and I'm being attacked directly, I can activate this card. Not only is the attack negated but you lose life points equal to half of your monster's Attack Points and that's 1050!"

Alexis's eyes widened as the white star-speckled shield appeared around Xander and Cyber Blader bounced off it before being sent back to Alexis's field, attacking her instead. She winced as her Blader landed a kick into her stomach, knocking her to the ground and taking out the rest of her Life Points.

**Alexis: 0**

**Xander: 500 WINNER**

"And that's game, Alexis," Xander said.

"They even sound alike when they say that," Syrus mused.

Xander walked over to join the blonde Obelisk. "Nice duel," he said, holding out a hand to help the blonde Obelisk to her feet. "Jaden's right, you are a strong duelist."

Alexis smiled. "You're not so bad yourself. I can see why you were able to get into Ra Yellow. Wonder why Jaden didn't get into Ra Yellow."

"He slept through most of the written portion of the entrance exam," Xander said with a shrug.

"Thanks a lot for that, bro," Jaden muttered while Alexis giggled.

**. . .**

That night, Xander lay in his bed gazing up at the ceiling with one arm behind his head attempting to get to sleep. Strangely, ever since he came to Duel Academy, his sleep was often restless. He never let on that he wasn't getting much sleep as he didn't want his brother to worry, and he didn't want to appear lazy like his brother, but he knew his duel spirits were worried.

'_Xander, you need to get some sleep,_' Sand Hound barked as he appeared and curled up on Xander's legs causing the Star Force duelist to chuckle.

"I'm not tired," he said.

Sand Hound gave him a look that clearly said he didn't believe a single word the other duelist was saying. '_Sure,_' he barked. His liquid brown eyes took on a concerned look before he added, '_Are those nightmares back?_'

Xander sighed as he sat up. "I don't know, Sand," he said. "I just can't sleep at all. Even if I am having those nightmares again, I can't remember them when I wake up."

'_Maybe you're jussst trying to adjussst to being away from your brother,_' Cloud Snake suggested with a hiss as she appeared in front of Sand Hound coiled on Xander's chest.

"When did I become your guys' pillow?" Xander asked amused.

'_Since always,_'Sand Hound barked. '_But Cloudy might be right._'

'_Don't call me Cloudy,_' Cloud Snake hissed turning her head to glare at Sand Hound.

Xander smiled a little. "Maybe you're right. I mean, it is different. We've done everything together, ever since we were little," he said softly.

'_Try to get some sleep, Xander,_' Sand Hound barked softly as he bounded off the bed.

"I will." _And I hope it's more restful than all my other nights since we got to the academy have been. I really hope Cloud Snake's right and those nightmares haven't come back,_ Xander thought watching as two of his duel spirits vanished back into his deck before he closed his eyes.

_Darkness covered the land; storm clouds covered the sky. Strikes of lightning illuminated the air and sinister laughter could be heard in the background. Silver eyes peered out of the darkness gazing directly at Xander eyes alit with mischief and malice._

"_You can't run from your past forever, Xander," a voice whispered and another burst of lightning shot down from the sky to strike at the earth, causing nearby trees to catch aflame and send coils of smoke into the air. Flames licked the storm-covered sky and the sounds of dying animals and humans permeated the air._

"_It will only be a matter of time before He awakens and your past merges with your present," the voice whispered and then it was gone._

_Suddenly, the ground on which Xander was standing vanished and, with a scream, he found himself falling into an abyss, falling, falling…_

With a gasp, Xander tore himself out off his sleep shivering body covered in a cold sweat as fear flooded through him. _Oh man, they're back. This isn't good,_ he whispered.

Getting to his feet, Xander moved over to the window of his dorm room and gazed out at the star-speckled ocean that stretched out in front of him thinking about his nightmare. He had thought they had gone away years ago, right around the same time Jaden's own nightmares had gone away, but they were back and Xander didn't know whether he would be able to handle them.

He didn't want to involve Jaden because he knew his brother had been worried sick about him during the time when the nightmares first appeared almost eight years ago. He didn't want to put his brother through all of this again.

_Maybe they'll go away like they did last time,_ Xander thought still gazing at the ocean surrounding Academy Island.

Unfortunately, he found he couldn't believe his own words.

**. . .**

**A/n what do you think?**

**Blaze: yay! Not only did I get through the Jaden/Alexis and Xander/Alexis duels but I also added in some information that I hope will thicken the plot! What could these nightmares be about? Who was that voice speaking in Xander's nightmare? Hmmm. You'll find out more later on in the story.**

**Darth: cool. Now on to the card stats…**

**Blaze: yup. Here are the cards that Xander used in this chapter.**

_Star Force Cloud Snake_

LIGHT

2

Reptile-effect

ATK: 400

DEF: 200

When this card is destroyed, destroy 1 Field or Continuous Spell Card on the field.

_Star Lightning Burst_

TRAP

Activate only when a monster with "Star Force" in its name is attacked by a monster with a greater ATK: Destroy the attacking monster and inflict damage to your opponent equal to the Monster's level x 100.

_Star Force Dark Guardian_

DARK

4

Warrior-effect

ATK: 1800

DEF: 1200

Once per turn, if your opponent attacks this card with a monster with a higher ATK, you can negate the attack.

_Star Force Dark Sentinel_

DARK

8

Warrior-fusion-effect

ATK: 2800

DEF: 2300

"Star Force Dark Guardian" + "Star Force Dark Consular"

Once per turn, you can target 1 monster your opponent controls; its effect is negated until the opponent's next End Phase.

_Star Force Shadow Apprentice_

DARK

4

Warrior

ATK: 1600

DEF: 1000

_Starlight Barrier_

TRAP

Activated only when a monster your opponent controls attacks you directly while your Life Points are less than 1000: Negate the attack and deal damage to your opponent equal to half of the attacking monster's ATK.

**Blaze: also, a big thank you to EndlessNight025 for being an awesome beta-reader.**

**Darth: in the next chapter, it's time for the tests. We get to see Jaden versus Chazz, which may or may not go as canon depending on whether Blaze decides to change anything, as well as Xander versus Nick Birch (the OC created by IfTimeWasStill). Yes, I know Nick Birch is older than Xander but we can just say this is Crowler being, well, Crowler.**

**Blaze: yup. I hope that you enjoy this chapter. The next chapter **_**may**_** be cut into two chapters (it depends on how long Jaden and Chazz's duel's are) and the tag-duel that I know one of my reviewers is looking forward to will occur in either chapter 6 or chapter 7 (again, this depends on whether I split the next chapter into two chapters or not). So please review, as they are much appreciated, and I will post the next chapter as soon as I'm done typing it and it has been beta-read.**


	6. Chapter Five

**Thank you to **_**decode9, IfTimeWasStill **_**and **_**Nightshade07**_** for reviewing the last chapter. You guys are the greatest.**

**And another huge thank you to _EndlessNight025_ for being such an awesome beta-reader. I knew it was a good idea to get myself a beta-reader as I'm really learning a lot about creating duels.**

**Note: Though**_** Genesis**_** will likely cover the entire first season of Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, it will mostly be used as an introduction to some OCs and to the main characters and, especially, to the ideas (however vague they were) that I presented in the prologue; these ideas will be more fully explored in Book Two and Book Three of this trilogy and the next two books will make Season 2 and Season 3 more AU than Season 1 is turning out to be. Just a little heads-up ahead of time.**

**Also, though I'm probably **_**way**_** early in asking this (as I still have many episodes to do for this story), I will be looking for OCs to include in Book Two. I'll keep in mind anyone who has already asked (but whom I said no for this story) but anyone is welcomed to ask.**

**All right, enough of my rambling and on to Chapter Five, which is, by far, the longest chapter I've ever written on **_**any**_** of my fanfiction stories. Oh and **_**IfTimeWasStill**_**, I hope I did a good job with your OC but I had a bit of trouble incorporating his personality into his dueling.**

**Either way, reviews, as always, are much appreciated.**

**Chapter Five**

A week later and it was time for the first exams of the year. The exams would be used to determine whether a student was ready to move on up to the next dorm or, in Obelisks' case, stay right where they were, at least in terms of the dueling portions of the test. It was also the day in which Duel Academy would receive its new rare cards.

**. . .**

A fleet of ships cruised across the ocean, heading toward Academy Island. Above them flew a few airplanes. The captain stood on the bridge of the lead ship before turning around to face his crew. "Well, everyone," he began. "It's been a long journey, it seems like everyone's been after us with attack subs, secret spies and Air Force fighters but it'll all pay off soon. We will arrive at our destination with our payload safe and intact."

He turned his gaze back to the ocean. "Now, full speed ahead. This is the moment we've been waiting for, the moment Duel Academy gets their new rare cards."

**. . .**

Raisa yawned as she made her way into the meal hall where the rest of the Slifer students were eating breakfast. It was about an hour before the exams would begin and Raisa was well-rested and looking forward to the exam. She was still unsure who she would be dueling during the dueling portion of the exam but she figured it would be another Slifer. Either way she was looking forward to it.

She looked around, noticing that everyone but Jaden, Syrus and Chumley were in the room, eating their meals and talking with each other. She had become good friends with the three of them as well as with Bastion and Xander and she knew just how Jaden got; so she wasn't too surprised that Jaden wasn't awake yet.

Sitting down at the only empty table in the meal hall with her breakfast, Raisa ate in silence and, when she was done, she made her way out of the meal hall and headed towards the main building.

**. . .**

'_Xander! Get your lazzzy butt outta bed!_' Cloud Snake hissed loudly directly into Xander's ear, causing him to roll over but he didn't wake up.

_'Argh_, _why_ _isss it ssso hard to wake Xander up nowadaysss? Jaden'sss usssually the lazzzy one_,' she hissed to herself, glaring at Xander who was oblivious to her hisses.

'_He hasn't been sleeping well since we came to Duel Academy_,' Sand Hound admitted from where he was curled up on Xander's legs. '_He woke up in the middle of the night again_.'

Cloud Snake looked at the sleeping boy before she hissed out a sigh. '_Ssshould we call out Iccce Phoenix?_' she hissed, turning her head to look at Sand Hound.

'_Might be the only thing to do_,' the sand-colored hound replied before barking out, '_Ice Phoenix, get out here!_'

A moment later, the beautiful blue-white bird with icicles on her feathers flew out of Xander's deck before floating above the boy. She looked down at him. '_Sleeping in? That's so unlike him_,' she mused.

'_We think it's 'cause he didn't get a restful sleep_,' Sand Hound said.

'_Ssso could you wake him up?_' Cloud Snake hissed.

_'Of_ _course_,' Ice Phoenix said and proceeded to fly straight through Xander, causing the boy to yelp, jump up and promptly fall off his bed.

"Dang it! That was cold!" he exclaimed, getting to his feet and glaring at Ice Phoenix as she flew through the bed to float in front of him. "I told you not to do that anymore, Ice!"

_'You_ _would've been late if ssshe hadn't done that, Xander_,' Cloud Snake hissed.

Xander glanced at the alarm clock before his eyes widened. "Oh man, you're right. Thanks guys," he shouted as he dashed toward the bathroom to get ready for the exams.

**. . .**

"Please, please, please, let me pass this test," Syrus whispered from where he was seated at one of the desks. There were lit candles on the desk and he was wearing a white headband with three Monster Reborn cards on them and was praying to a poster of the Egyptian God Card Slifer the Sky Dragon.

"I don't want to be stuck in this red jacket forever, not that anything's wrong with red. I mean, it looks great on you, Slifer…"

The alarm clock went off at that moment, causing Syrus to jump and scream "Slifer!" before he realized it was just the alarm clock

Breathing a sigh of relief, he said, "Just the alarm clock." He walked over to the alarm clock, which was right next to Jaden's head and noticed that the ringing hadn't fazed the dark-haired boy at all.

"And, of course, Jaden sleeps right through it," Syrus said with a sigh before he nudged Jaden. "Jaden, wake up! The tests are today and we don't wanna be…"

"Wrong!" Jaden suddenly shouted, smacking Syrus and sending the little Slifer to the ground. "Because I play a Trap." Then he turned over on the bed and went back to sleep.

Syrus groaned. "Why can't he ever sleep in Defense Mode? It'd be a lot safer," he muttered.

"Duh, Syrus," Chumley said, looking down at Syrus from the top bunk with his head propped on his arms. "You shouldn't be waking him up at all. Let him catch some Zs and make our day easier. Get what I'm saying?"

Syrus shook his head. "Chumley, I don't get anything you're saying," he protested.

"You see," Chumley said patiently. "We have two different tests today. A written test and then a field test. The written test should be pretty easy, but the field test has you paired up against other students, mostly from the same dorm and I don't want to duel the same guy that beat Dr. Crowler. Now do you get it?" He winked.

"Yeah, I get what you're saying all right," Syrus said, glaring at Chumley. "It's a no wonder you were held back three years in a row." He turned back to Jaden. "Jaden, wake up already! I'll save you a seat!"

Without another word, Syrus dashed out of the room.

Chumley sighed. "Oh well, plan B it is."

**. . .**

_Where the heck is Jaden?_ Xander thought as he worked on the written exam and occasionally glanced towards the Slifer section to see Syrus sleeping and the seat next to him empty. He narrowed his eyes; if he hadn't been running late himself then he would have gone to the Slifer Dorm and woken Jaden up himself. He was one of the few who could.

_Just goes to show that I really need to figure out why I can't seem to have a restful sleep though my nightmares certainly aren't helping_, he thought, resting his head on the palm of his hand as he yawned. He was still very tired, having woken up early that morning from another nightmare. And it was because of the similar nightmares he had been having every day for the last week that convinced him that his nightmares were back. He had thought they had gone away for good but that obviously wasn't the case.

Yawning, he pushed those thoughts away and refocused on his test. When there was about forty five minutes left, Jaden made his way into the lecture hall to which Xander raised an eyebrow. He gave Jaden a pointed look and Jaden simply shrugged.

'_I'll explain later_,' he mouthed to the older twin.

'_You better,_' Xander mouthed back to which his brother rolled his eyes.

**. . .**

"A Field Spell…counters a Normal Spell…" Syrus was mumbling in his sleep when Jaden took a seat beside him.

"I didn't know this was an oral exam," Jaden said, pulling Syrus out of his sleep. "Or maybe you could've done without the all night Slifer séance."

"Hey, Slacker! Keep it down!" Chazz yelled from his seat with the rest of the Obelisks. "Unlike you, some of us are trying to pass."

"Hey, I try to pass. It just doesn't end up that way," Jaden protested.

"Maybe you shouldn't sleep through your tests then, eh, Jay?" Xander called down from his seat next to Bastion.

Jaden glared at his brother who simply smirked at him.

Banner called for Jaden to come and get his exam before the younger Yuki twin could utter a retort.

Jaden did as he was told but would have slept for the next forty-five minutes had he not been hit in the head with a pencil five minutes after he started dozing. With a scowl, he turned to glare at Xander who smirked.

Jaden sighed and returned his attention to the test. May _as well do something or Xander'll likely hit me with more pencils_, he thought.

Forty-five minutes later after he collected the tests, Banner cleared his throat. "All right, children, the written exam is now over. Now please walk, don't run, to get in line for your new rare cards."

"They're here!"

"Oh dear."

Those two words had barely left Banner's mouth before there was a stampede toward the doors, leaving only Jaden, Syrus, Bastion and Xander behind. Jaden, who had started dozing toward the end of the test, just yawned and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes while Syrus was pulling himself out of his sleep.

"What's the big idea tossing a pencil at my head, Xan?" Jaden asked, glaring at his brother.

"Hey, it got you to actually do part of the test," Xander said with a shrug as he and Bastion walked over to join them. Jaden responded by punching his brother hard in the shoulder.

Syrus looked around. "Where is everyone?" he asked.

"At the card shack, trying to improve their decks for the field test," Bastion explained.

"Hey, wait a second, Bastion, why aren't you and Xander in a hurry?" Syrus asked, confused.

"Oh please, one errant card and the delicate balance of my deck would be thrown off," Bastion replied.

Xander shrugged. "I'm confident in my deck as it is," he said.

"Well, mine wouldn't and I'm not," Syrus muttered.

"So let's go! There's nothing like the smell of new cards in the morning," Jaden exclaimed before practically dragging Syrus out of the lecture hall.

Xander rolled his eyes smiling fondly as he watched Jaden and Syrus leave.

**. . .**

Raisa had walked at the back of the crowd of students heading to the card shack, not wanting to get trampled but also curious to see the new rare cards. _Maybe there's a Lightsworn monster I can add to my deck_, she thought.

She stood at the edge of the group, watching as the other students banged on the metal doors of the card shack and she shook her head. _Wow, they certainly get excited_, she thought.

There were some guards standing between the card shack and the mob of students and an officer walked forward. "Oh, children, looking for these?" he called out before holding out a briefcase as the crowd cheered. The metal door slide open slightly and the officer slipped inside. "Then come and get them."

The metal doors opened and the card shack was revealed. The brief case rested on the table but it was empty.

Raisa frowned. "Where are all the cards?" she asked as everyone stared or fell to the ground in shock.

The counter girl stood by the briefcase, next to a man in a black trench coat with a hat over his face. "You know the rules, first come, first serve," the counter girl said.

"And I was here first, so I took every one," the man replied.

Raisa's frown deepened, for the voice sounded familiar. "Oh well, I guess I'll just go with the deck I have now," she said before she walked away, heading toward the field testing room.

**. . .**

Jaden, Syrus and Xander made it to the card shack only to find that it was empty and the only person in sight was the counter girl.

"Excuse me, counter girl?" Syrus said. "Do you have some packs left?"

"Sure we do, but just the normal ones," the girl said, pushing a single pack across the table. "Here you go."

"We said some, not one," the two Slifers complained.

"I'm done for. I slept through the written part of the exam and now I'm going to fail the field part because I can't upgrade my deck," Syrus complained.

Jaden glanced at him. "Then you take the pack, Sy," he said.

"You mean you would give me the last pack? But what if…what if you fail?"

"I may flunk from time to time but I never fail," Jaden said confidently.

"Jay's got this field test in the bag, Sy," Xander said.

Syrus smiled, looking relieved. "Thank you," he said.

**. . .**

Meanwhile, Akio and Saku were telling Chazz about what happened at the card shack. "We couldn't get you a single one, sorry, Chazz," Akio said.

"You know what's sorry?" Chazz said coolly. "You too, but it doesn't matter because there's not a single duelist at this school who can beat me, no matter what cards they carry."

"Unless that single duelist happens to be Jaden Yuki."

The three Obelisks turned to find a man in a black trench coat standing behind them.

"Who are you?" Chazz asked.

"Somebody who thinks you despise Jaden Yuki as much as I do."

"That's him. That's the sticky fingers who took all of the rare cards," Akio said.

"Rare cards? What rare cards? Oh, you mean these?" He spread his trench coat to reveal row after row of cards.

"Enough with the cloak and dagger. Tell me who you really are," Chazz demanded.

"Don't recognize me, do you, Chazz? Well, how about now!" He threw off his hat to reveal that it was Crowler.

"Oh, it's just Crowler," Chazz said dismissively and Crowler scowled.

"Is that any way to talk to the one who's going to help you beat Jaden Yuki on the field test?" he demanded.

"But we're not in the same dorm. So I can't be his opponent."

"Oh, you just leave that to me. You just be sure to use these rare cards in the field test against him. And once he loses miserably, he'll be kicked out of the school," Crowler said, handing Chazz a stack of rare cards.

_And the older Yuki twin is next_, the Obelisk Headmaster thought.

**. . .**

The dueling arena was divided into six fields lying side by side. Raisa was among the first to be dueling and was only a little surprised to find that her opponent was Syrus.

Syrus gulped, looking hesitant. "Ah man, I get paired up with the girl who beat an Obelisk?" he complained.

Raisa smiled. "Hey, I'm sure you'll be fine, Sy," she said.

"I hope so."

"Ready when you are," the purple-haired girl said activating her duel disk and Syrus followed suit.

"Duel!"

**Raisa: 4000**

**Syrus: 4000**

"You can go first, Sy," Raisa said.

"Oh, uh thanks," Syrus said, drawing his sixth card. "I'll start by summoning Drillroid in Attack Mode."

A moment later, a drill with a purple outer shell and two drills for arms appeared on the field a grin on its face (A: 1600/D: 1600).

"Then I'll place one card face down and that's it." He slipped the card into a Spell/Trap Card slot.

"All right, my turn," Raisa said, drawing a card before looking at it. "And I'm summoning Ehren, Lightsworn Monk to my field in Attack Mode."

A moment after she placed the card on her duel disk, a dark-skinned woman with two ponytails dressed in white and gold armor carrying a staff appeared on the field, holding an offensive position (A: 1600/D: 1000).

"Then, I'll place one card face down and end my turn. As it's my End Phase, I have to send the top three cards of my deck to my graveyard," Raisa said before she slipped the top three cards of her deck into her Graveyard slot.

"All right, my turn," Syrus said drawing a card. "And I'm summoning Steamroid to my field in Attack Mode."

A train with a black engine and a red car appeared on the field with its eyes fixed on Raisa and her monster (A: 1800/D: 1800).

"Go, Steamroid, attack her Monk. Steam Roll Attack. Oh, and when he attacks a monster, he gains 500 Attack Points," Syrus said and Raisa shielded her face as Steamroid (A: 1800-2300) came forward and ran Ehren over, destroying her.

**Raisa: 3300**

**Syrus: 4000**

"Nice move, Sy," Raisa complimented, as it was a pretty good move.

Syrus smiled a little. "Thanks," he said. "I'll place one card face down and end my turn."

"My turn," Raisa said, drawing a card. "And I summon Garoth, Lightsworn Warrior to my field in Attack Mode."

She placed her card on her disk and a muscular black-haired man in white and gold armor appeared on the field, wielding an axe (A: 1850/D: 1300).

"Go, Garoth, attack Syrus's Steamroid with Light Axe Cut," Raisa ordered and Garoth nodded before charging forward.

"I activate my Trap Card, Negate Attack, to negate your attack and end the Battle Phase," Syrus declared.

"Sorry, Sy," Raisa said, "but I activate my Trap Card, Royal Decree. Now, the effects of all Trap Cards, aside from this one, are negated."

"Ah man, and since Steamroid's being attacked, he loses 500 Attack Points," Syrus muttered before watching as the Lightsworn Warrior struck Steamroid (A: 1800-1300) with his axe, destroying him before returning to Raisa's side of the field.

**Raisa: 3300**

**Syrus: 3450**

"I'll end my turn with that," Raisa said.

"My draw," Syrus said, drawing a card. "I'm starting my turn by summoning Submarineroid to my field in Attack Mode." He placed the card on his disk and a blue-and-yellow submarine with a face appeared on the field (A: 800/D: 1800).

"And I'm activating his Special Ability. He can now attack you directly," Syrus said and the submarine dove into the ground before traveling toward Raisa, striking her and bringing down her Life Points.

**Raisa: 2500**

**Syrus: 3450**

"Now, since he attacked, I can switch him to Defense Mode," Syrus added as the submarine returned to his side before assuming a defensive position. "I'll place one card face down and end my turn."

"My turn," Raisa said, drawing a card. "And now I'm sacrificing Garoth, Lightsworn Warrior in order to summon Celestia, Lightsworn Angel to my field in Attack Mode."

Garoth disappeared to be replaced by a beautiful woman with long blue hair and large white wings on her back (A: 2300/D: 200).

"And since I tributed a Lightsworn monster to summon her, I can send the top four cards of my deck to my Graveyard," Raisa added, removing the top four cards of her deck and adding them to her Graveyard. "Now, I can target up to two cards that you control and destroy them."

Syrus's eyes widened.

"I choose to destroy your Submarineroid and one of your facedowns," Raisa added and Syrus shielded his face with his duel disk as Submarineroid and one of Syrus's facedowns were destroyed.

"And now, Celestia, attack Drillroid, Celestial Strike," Raisa ordered.

Syrus winced as his Drillroid was destroyed and his Life Points went down.

**Raisa: 2500**

**Syrus: 2750**

"And I'll end my turn now," Raisa said.

Syrus lowered his arm before taking a deep breath, though he looked worried. "Okay, my turn," he said, drawing a card. "I'm summoning Expressroid to my field in Defense Mode."

A moment later, a long silver-blue train with a face appeared on the field (A: 400/D: 1600).

"And since he was successfully summoned, I can add two roid cards from my Graveyard to my hand," Syrus added before retrieving two monsters from his Graveyard. "I'll place one card face down and end my turn."

Raisa drew a card, beginning her turn. "I'm summoning Jain, Lightsworn Paladin to my field in Attack Mode," she said and the white-haired warrior in white and gold armor appeared on the field holding her sword aloft (A: 1800/D: 1200).

"Now, Jain, attack Expressroid. Oh, and when she attacks a monster, she gains an extra 300 Attack Points during the Damage Step," Raisa added as Jain's Attack climbed to 2100 before she struck Expressroid with her sword, destroying him and leaving Syrus wide open.

"And, Celestia, attack Syrus directly," Raisa ordered before watching her angel slam her staff into Syrus before returning to Raisa's side of the field.

**Raisa: 2500**

**Syrus: 450**

"And then I'll end my turn, which means that I now have to discard the top two cards of my deck to the Graveyard because of Jain's effect," Raisa said, putting the cards into her Graveyard slot.

"Okay, my turn," Syrus said, drawing a card. "And I'm summoning Submarineroid back to my field in Attack Mode." The blue-and-yellow submarine reappeared on the field (A: 800/D: 1800). "And I'm also activating his Special Ability to attack you directly."

The submarine dove back into the ground and, traveling beneath the ground, struck Raisa, causing her to stumble a little.

**Raisa: 1700**

**Syrus: 450**

"And, after I switch Submarineroid to Defense Mode, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Royal Decree," Syrus added and Raisa shielded her face as the tornado surge across the field to destroy the Trap Card.

"I'll end my turn by placing one card face down," Syrus added.

"My draw," Raisa said, drawing a card. She examined the field with narrowed eyes. _Hmm, does he have a Trap Card face down? Or it is a Spell? Should I risk it? He did destroy Royal Decree so that could mean he has a Trap Card out._

She decided not to risk it. "I place one card face down and end my turn, meaning I have to discard two more cards because of Jain's ability," she said, placing a card in a Spell/Trap card slot and then discarding the top two cards of her deck to her Graveyard.

"My draw and I play Pot of Greed to draw two more cards," Syrus said before doing so and grinning, telling Raisa he got some pretty good cards. "First, I'll switch Submarineroid back into Attack Mode."

The cartoonish submarine once again changed modes, this time ready to go on the offensive.

"Now I play Monster Reborn to bring back Steamroid in Attack Mode," Syrus added and his black and red train-like monster reappeared on the field (A: 1800/D: 1800).

"Then I'm activating Limiter Removal to double the Attack Points of all of my Machine-type monsters."

_Well, this isn't good_, Raisa thought as both Steamroid's and Submarineroid's Attack Points doubled (Ste A: 1800-3600 Sub A: 800-1600).

Syrus looked excited, probably because he was only a few moves away from ending the duel, and there was nothing Raisa could do to stop him. "Okay, Submarineroid, attack Raisa directly," he called out to his first monster.

Raisa winced as the submarine's attack knocked out more of her Life Points. Due to Submarineroid's effect, it only dealt her damage equal to its original Attack though.

**Raisa: 900**

**Syrus: 450**

"Now it's your turn, Steamroid. Attack Jain with Steam Roll Attack! And don't forget that he gains 500 Attack Points whenever he attacks a monster," Syrus said, smiling as Steamroid's Attack rose to 4100 right before it ran Jain over, destroying her and knocking out the last of Raisa's Life Points.

**Raisa: 0**

**Syrus: 450 WINNER**

Raisa lowered her duel disk, which she had used to shield herself, while Syrus yelled, "I won! I actually won!"

The Lightsworn duelist chuckled. "Nice job, Sy," she said.

Syrus grinned, still beaming with excitement.

**. . .**

_Syrus's happy though I can't blame him. Sweet duel though,_ Xander thought watching as Syrus did a little happy dance after having beaten Raisa before he shook his head amused. He glanced up as his opponent entered the dueling arena the older Yuki twin had just entered.

His opponent—Nick Birch—was a tall third year Ra Yellow with scruffy blonde hair and gray-blue eyes behind brown rectangular rimmed glasses. He looked really laid back with his blazer unbuttoned and he wasn't wearing socks or shoes.

"Hey, you're the kid with that new archetype, aren't you?" he said.

"Yeah, that's me," Xander said.

"Your cards are way cool," Nick said grinning before activating his duel disk. "Ready to duel?"

"You bet! Time to get your game on, Nick," Xander said also grinning and activating his duel disk.

"Duel!"

**Xander: 4000**

**Nick: 4000**

"I think I'll go first," Nick said after the two of them drew their starting hands before he drew his sixth card. "And I summon Gladiator Beast Darius to my field in Attack Mode." He placed the card on his disk and a purple horse-like creature with a black hair and red-colored armor (A: 1700/D: 300). "Then I'm placing two cards face down and that's it. Your move."

"All right, my draw," Xander said, drawing a card. "Then I summon Star Force Shadow Apprentice to my field in Defense Mode."

The silver-haired woman appeared on the field, kneeling down with her dagger pointed downward (A: 1600/D: 1000).

"And I place two cards face down and end my turn." He slipped the two cards into two Spell/Trap Card slots.

"My turn," Nick said, drawing a card. "And since I have a Gladiator Beast on my field, I can Special Summon Test Tiger to my field."

A moment later, a tiger with blue, gold and red armor appeared on the field (A: 600/D: 300).

"He's not staying for long though," Nick said. "Now, I tribute him and target Darius to return him to my deck. After shuffling,"—he paused to shuffle now that Darius was back in his deck—"I can Special Summon a Gladiator Beast from my deck to the field. I choose Gladiator Beast Dimacari."

Soon after Darius disappeared, a purple bull-like creature appeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1200).

"And since Dimacari was Special Summoned to the field because of Test Tiger, I can treat it as though it was Special Summoned by a Gladiator Beast. This means that I can use his Special Ability that lets him attack twice during the Battle Phase," Nick said before he pointed to Shadow Apprentice. "Go, Dimacari, attack Shadow Apprentice."

"I activate my Trap Card, Stasis," Xander said, pressing a button on his disk to reveal the Trap. "When a Star Force monster is attacked while it's in Defense Mode, this card not only stops the attack but it switches your monster to Defense Mode and ends the Battle Phase."

Dimacari was sent back to Nick's side of the field and crouched down, assuming a defensive position.

"Wow, neat card," Nick said. "In that case, I think I'll activate my face-down, Call of the Haunted and use it to bring back my Test Tiger."

The armored feline returned to the field with a mighty growl.

"And I'll tribute him once again and target Dimacari to return him to my deck to Special Summon another Gladiator Beast in its place. I chose Gladiator Beast Hoplomus in Defense Mode."

Test Tiger and Dimacari vanished to be replaced by a large rhino-like creature in armor (A: 700/D: 2100).

"And when Hoplomus is Special Summoned by the effect of a Gladiator Beast, his original Defense Points becomes 2400," Nick added and Hoplomus's Defense Points changed (D: 2100-2400). "I'll end my turn now."

_Hmm, that monster sure as a lot of Defense Points_, Xander thought. "My draw," he said, drawing a card. "And I sacrifice Star Force Shadow Apprentice to summon Star Force Shadow Knight to my field in Attack Mode."

Shadow Apprentice vanished to be replaced by a man dressed in armor and partially covered with a black robe clasped at the throat with a silver star-shaped brooch (A: 2000/D: 1900).

'_It's about time you used me_,' Shadow Knight complained.

"Next, I equip Shadow Knight with Saber of Light to increase his Attack Points by 800," Xander added, ignoring Shadow Knight's complaint and placing the card on his disk as the weapon appeared in Shadow Knight's hand and he activated it, revealing a glowing blue blade (A: 2000-2800/D: 1900).

"Now, Shadow Knight, attack Hoplomus with Shadow Slice," Xander ordered.

'_Yes, action!_' Shadow Knight shouted as he sprang into action.

"I activate my Trap, Waboku," Nick declared, revealing his Trap Card. "Now, not only do I not take any battle damage during this turn but also my monster isn't destroyed."

Shadow Knight's blade was blocked and then he was sent back to Xander's side of the field, though Xander heard him mutter a complaint.

"And since Hoplomus was attacked, I can now return him to my deck, shuffle and Special Summon another Gladiator Beast to my field. I choose Gladiator Beast Spartacus," Nick said and Hoplomus vanished to be replaced by a dark-brown armored dinosaur carrying a battle axe in his hands (A: 2200/D: 1600).

"Wait, he's a Level Five monster? How…?" Xander began, confused.

"I can summon him because I used Hoplomus's effect to Special Summon him," Nick explained. "And when he's summoned this way, I can activate his effect, which allows me to add a Gladiator Beast Equip Spell from my deck to my hand." He retrieved the Equip Spell before joining it with his other cards.

"Oh." _Man, these Gladiator Beasts are something else,_ Xander thought. He was enjoying the challenge but then he always did. "I end my turn," he said.

"My turn," Nick said before he drew and added his card to his hand. "Now, I'm equipping that card I just got a moment ago to Spartacus; it's called Gladiator Beast's Battle Manica and its effect is that my monster can't be destroyed in battle."

A moment later, an armlet appeared around Spartacus's arm; it was a pale-purple color with a large, orange gem rested on the bicep.

"Next, I activate the Spell Card, Terraforming to bring a Field Spell Card from my deck to my hand." He searched through his deck after activating the card and pulled out another card.

"Now, I think I'm going to activate it. It's called Colosseum – Cage of the Gladiator Beasts," Nick added before he slipped the card into his Field Card slot. The arena changed and now they were standing in a stone arena with broken stones and blue veins traveling in between the stones that made up the colosseum.

"Now, for every Special Summon we make, this card gains a Counter and, for each Counter on this card, all Gladiator Beasts gain 100 Attack and Defense Points," Nick said. "I'll end my turn now."

"My turn," Xander said, drawing a card before adding it to his hand and pointing to Spartacus. "Now, Shadow Knight, attack Spartacus with Shadow Slice."

"My monster won't be destroyed, though," Nick said with a puzzled frown.

"I know, but you'll still take damage," Xander said with a shrug, watching as Shadow Knight, with a shout, leapt at Spartacus and sliced downward. Spartacus simply lifted his arm and Shadow Knight's blade bounced off the armlet, only to hit Nick instead.

**Xander: 4000**

**Nick: 3400**

_Yes, first blood,_ Xander thought as Shadow Knight returned to his side of the field.

"Nice move, Xander," Nick said. "But, since you attacked Spartacus, I get to return him to my deck but I also get to return Battle Manica to my hand and I get to Special Summon yet another Gladiator Beast."

Spartacus vanished and Nick searched through his deck before grinning and saying, "And I think I'm going to go with my Gladiator Beast Augustus!"

A moment later, a creature with a bird's head on top of which was a red plume in dark-purple and black armor appeared on the field (A: 2600/D: 1000).

"Whoa. A Level Eight monster?" Xander said, surprised. _These Gladiator Beasts sure are sweet_, he thought.

Nick nodded. "Now Augustus's effect can be used; when he's Special Summoned by the effect of a Gladiator Beast, I can Special Summon another Gladiator Beast from my hand to my field in Defense Mode and I choose Gladiator Beast Lanista."

A moment later, a winged-beast dressed in green and blue armor with green wings appeared, kneeling on the field (A: 1800/ D: 1200).

"Oh, and since I just Special Summoned two monsters, my Colosseum gains two Counters and Augustus and Lanista gain 200 Attack and Defense Points," he added as Augustus and Lanista were powered up (Aug A: 2600-2800/D: 1100-1200) (Lan A: 1800-2000/D: 1200-1400) (CC: 2).

"I'll just end my turn now," Xander said as he couldn't do much else anyway.

"During the End Phase, the monster summoned from Augustus's effect returns to my deck. Later, Lanista," Nick said before the bird-like creature vanished from the field and was shuffled back into Nick's deck.

Nick drew a card before smiling. "Okay, to start, I'm activating the Quick-Play Spell, Indomitable Gladiator Beast to increase Augustus's Attack Points by 500 until the End Phase of this turn." (Aug A: 2800-3300/D: 1200).

"Now, Augustus, attack Shadow Knight with Gladiator Slash," Nick ordered and Xander winced as Augustus leapt forward and sliced through Shadow Knight, destroying him.

**Xander: 3500**

**Nick: 3400**

Suddenly, the blue saber that Shadow Knight had been wielding appeared and stabbed Nick, causing him to gasp and stagger back.

"What the…?" he began.

"When Saber of Light is destroyed along with the monster it's equipped with, you take 800 points of damage," Xander explained.

**Xander: 3500**

**Nick: 2600**

"Nice effect," Nick said, straightening up. "Okay, since Augustus attacked, I'll return him to my deck and I now Special Summon Gladiator Beast Laquari to the field. And his Special Ability changes his original Attack Points to 2100."

An armored beast-warrior surrounded by a ring of flames appeared on the field (A: 1800-2100/D: 400).

"Not only that, but my Colosseum gains another Counter and Laquari gains 300 extra Attack and Defense Points," Nick added. (Laq A: 2100-2400/D: 400-700). "I end my turn."

"My turn," Xander said, drawing a card. "And I summon Star Force Dark Consular to my field in Defense Mode." A moment later, a woman in a form-fitting black bodysuit with a silver-lined black cloak over it knelt down on the field (A: 1300/D: 1200).

"And, once per turn, she can remove a face-up Spell Card on the field from play and I choose your Colosseum," Xander added and the coliseum vanished, causing Laquari's power to drop back to normal (Laq A: 2400-2100/D: 700-400). "I'll end my turn with that."

"My turn," Nick said, drawing a card. "I summon Gladiator Beast Murmillo in Attack Mode."

A purple-and-blue fish creature with red webbing between his fingers appeared on the field (A: 800/D: 400).

He then pointed to Xander's Consular. "Now, Laquari, attack Dark Consular." Laquari leapt forward and Xander shielded his face as his Consular was destroyed.

"And now, Murmillo, attack Xander directly," Nick ordered and Xander winced as Murmillo's attack nearly knocked him off his feet.

**Xander: 2700**

**Nick: 2600**

"And since Laquari and Murmillo attacked, now that my Battle Phase's over, I return both of them to my deck and summon Gladiator Beast Lanista and Gladiator Beast Samnite in their place," Nick said and Laquari and Murmillo vanished to be shuffled in his deck. They were soon replaced by the familiar winged-beast from before (A: 1800/D: 1200), along with a white, bipedal armored smilodon wielding a shield and sword (A: 1600/D: 1200).

"Next I'll play one card face-down and end my turn," Nick finished.

"My draw," Xander said, drawing a card. "And now I play Monster Reborn to bring back my Shadow Apprentice in Defense Mode."

A moment later, the silver-haired apprentice returned to the field (A: 1600/D: 1000).

"And I Normal Summon Star Force Ice Phoenix to my field, also in Defense Mode," Xander added and the beautiful blue-white bird appeared on the field with a soft trill (A: 1700/D: 1500).

"Then I place one card face down and end my turn," Xander said, putting the card down.

"My turn," Nick said, drawing a card.

"And I activate my Trap, Thunder of Ruler. Now there is no Battle Phase for this turn," Xander said, revealing the Trap Card he set early on in the duel.

"Sorry, Xander, but I activate this Counter Trap," Nick interjected, activating a Trap of his own. "Parry. Now by returning one Gladiator Beast from my hand to my deck—" he paused as he took a moment to remove Gladiator Beast Retiari from his hand and added it back to his deck—"I can negate the activation of your Trap and destroy it."

Xander shielded his face as his Trap suddenly burst into a thousand golden pixels._  
_

"Now that that's out of the way, I summon Gladiator Beast Andal in Attack Mode," Nick said and, a moment later, a giant black bear in gladiator attire with a scar across its left eye soon appeared on the field (A: 1900/D: 1500).

"Now, Samnite, attack his Shadow Apprentice," Nick ordered his first monster and Samnite pounced forward before taking out its sword and slicing through Shadow Apprentice, destroying her.

"And when Samnite destroys a monster and sends it to the Graveyard, I can add one Gladiator Beast card from my deck to my hand," Nick explained, searching through his deck before finding Gladiator Beast's Battle Gladius and adding it to his other cards.

"You're up next, Lanista. Take out Ice Phoenix!"

Lanista flew up high before impaling Ice Phoenix with its spear, destroying her and leaving Xander wide open until Ice Phoenix suddenly reappeared and flew over to Xander.

"By destroying Ice Phoenix, you activated her ability. Now I get Life Points equal to her original Defense Points," Xander said as Ice Phoenix flew around him.

**Xander: 4200**

**Nick: 2600**

Nick smiled. _A rather handy effect_, he thought. "Well, don't forget that Andal still hasn't had his turn yet. Go, Andal, attack Xander directly."

Xander winced as the bear charged right toward him and struck him, taking out a chunk of his Life Points.

**Xander: 2300**

**Nick: 2600**

"And now I think it's time to bring in one of my best monsters," Nick said with a grin and an excited gleam in his eyes. "I return Samnite, Lanista, and Andal to my deck in order to Special Summon Gladiator Beast Nerokius from my Extra Deck!"

A dark cloud suddenly appeared above the field as a fearsome bat-like monster with four wings and dark-colored armor descended behind Nick, its arms crossed in a serious manner (A: 2800/D: 1900).

Xander stared at the impressive monster in awe. _Okay, that is, by far, the sweetest of all the cards I've seen since this duel began, _he thought.

"Not only can't Nerokius be destroyed in battle, but if he attacks or is attacked, you can't activate cards or effects until the end of the Damage Step," Nick went on. "Next, to make him even stronger, I'll equip him with the Spell known as Gladiator Beast's Battle Gladius, which will increase his Attack Points by 300."

With that, a glowing golden sword with blue jewels around the hilt suddenly appeared in Nerokius's claws, increasing his strength (A: 2800-3100/D: 1900).

"And I'll end my turn with that."

"My turn," Xander said drawing a card. "And I activate my Spell Card, Starshine Draw. By paying 500 Life Points, I can draw five new cards from my deck." He drew five new cards and smiled when he saw the cards he drew; he had this duel won.

**Xander: ****1800**

**Nick: 2600**

"Now, I summon another Star Force Shadow Apprentice to my field," Xander said before watching as another silver-haired woman appeared (A: 1600/D: 1000). "Then I activate my Trap Card, Ultimate Offering," he added, revealing the Trap Card on his field. "And now, by paying 500 Life Points, I can summon another monster to my field, like my Star Force Weapons Master."—He paused as the robotic humanoid that was surrounded by an energy field appeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1500)—"But that's not all because next I give up another 500 Life Points and sacrifice both my monsters to summon my Star Force Shadow Dragon!"

**Xander:****800**

**Nick: 2600**

'_Man, are you ever going to keep me around longer?_' Weapons Master complained.

"Sorry, maybe next time," Xander said before Weapons Master and Shadow Apprentice vanished to be replaced by the large black dragon appearing from his cloud of darkness; his silver eyes glistening (A: 3500/D: 3000).

"And thanks to Shadow Dragon's Special Ability, he gains 500 Attack Points for every Star Force monster in my Graveyard. There are six at the moment, which means that my monster grows 3000 points stronger."

Shadow Dragon roared as the darkness around him increased, making his eyes glow even brighter as he received a power boost (A: 3500-6500/D: 3000).

_Dang_, Nick thought after seeing Shadow Dragon's new Attack Points. "Well, guess this duel's over," he said. "Promise me that we'll have a rematch, though."

"Anytime, Nick, anytime," Xander said. "Shadow Dragon, attack Nerokius with Dark Star Blast."

His dragon let out one last roar before sending forth a stream of black and silver energy that nailed Nerokius, dead-center. Although his monster wasn't destroyed, Nick still took the force of the blast, knocking him down and taking out the rest of his Life Points.

**Xander: ****800 ****WINNER**

**Nick: 0**

Nick flipped back to his feet and smiled. "Nice duel, Xander," he said as Xander, deactivating his duel disk, walked over to join him.

"Thanks. You've got some sweet monsters though, Nick," Xander said.

"Hey thanks!" Nick said. He glanced toward the dueling arena they were next to before adding, "Looks like your brother's next and…wait, he's dueling an Obelisk?"

"He's what?" Xander looked toward where Nick was gesturing and groaned when he saw who his brother's opponent was.

_Well, good luck bro,_ he thought.

"Hey, let's go get good seats to watch," Nick said before jogging away and Xander followed him.

**. . .**

Jaden stared in surprise at his opponent. "You mean I'm dueling an Obelisk and it's Chazz?" he said, looking at Crowler who was the judge of their exams.

"That's right, Jaden," Crowler said. "Since you always talk such a big game, I decided to pull some strings for you so you get the challenge you deserve. So congratulations, you'll be dueling one of the top ranked students at the school, what an honor! I sure hope you were able to snag a lot of today's rare cards so that your deck's up to snuff. What's wrong? Aren't you going to thank me?"

"Man, Crowler must not like Jaden," Nick commented from where he sat beside Xander while Raisa, Syrus and Bastion sat nearby. He had already been introduced to the two Slifers and one Ra after he sat down.

Xander snorted. "It's only 'cause Jaden beat him in the entrance exams. I'm wondering why he hasn't tried anything with me yet 'cause I beat him too," he said.

"I think that might be 'cause you're a Ra," Syrus said.

"This is clearly a trap," Bastion said. "Crowler hopes to expel Jaden by having him duel a powerful opponent with nothing stacked in his favor. Only a cavalier fool would agree to this."

"Hey, Jay, Bastion says you're a cavalier fool!" Xander shouted into the arena.

Bastion sputtered. "I did not say that!"

"Yeah, you did 'cause Jaden ain't gonna back down from this," Xander said.

"I'll do it," Jaden said after tossing a smirk toward his brother. He'd have to remember to look up what 'cavalier' meant later.

"Told ya," Xander said with a smirk.

"All right, Chazz, get your game on," Jaden said. "We'll get to finish what we started at Obelisk Arena."

"Indeed," Crowler said, "and in front of the whole school too so everyone can watch."

"Yeah, watch you get slammed by me," Chazz said with a sneer as the two of them took up their positions across from each other and activated their duel disks.

"Let's duel!"

Crowler dashed out of the way.

**Chazz: 4000**

**Jaden: 4000**

"No excuse this time, Chazz," Jaden said.

"Bring it, Slifer Slacker!" Chazz shouted back.

"'Oh, it's brought," Jaden said drawing his sixth card.

_Coo._

Jaden smiled when he spotted the Winged Kuriboh card. "Well, if it isn't my favorite furry friend," he said. _Kuriboh, you're in for a treat because we're about to rain some serious moves on Chazz._

"You remember this guy from our first duel, don't you Chazz? It's Elemental Hero Clayman and he'd like to get reacquainted," Jaden said, summoning the giant rock hero to the field in Defense Mode (A: 800/D: 2000).

"Not after he sees what I got for him. Don't think that overgrown pile of pebbles stands a chance against me or against this." Chazz drew his sixth card. Appreciate the rare card, Crowler, he thought as he added, "Fresh off the presses, Magical Mallet."

"'What's that?" Jaden asked.

"A redo, all the cards in my hand that I don't want, I return to my deck and then I can draw the same number of cards."

"Oh man, a rare card on his first draw," Xander said.

"And a very dangerous card at that," Bastion said. "Now Chazz will be able to pick exactly which cards he wants and which cards he doesn't."

"I didn't even get to the best part," Chazz said as he redrew from his deck and showed Magical Mallet to Jaden again. "You see, Jaden, I get to shuffle Magical Mallet too. So if I draw it again, which I just did, I can play it again and again. And that comes in handy, know why?"

"Uh, does anyone know why?" Syrus asked.

"Not me," Raisa said.

"It comes in handy when I'm looking for this. V-Tiger Jet, sharpen your claws for Attack Mode," Chazz said and a yellow mechanical tiger-like fighter jet appeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1800).

"Well, this isn't going to be easy for Jaden," Xander said.

"And there's a lot more where that came from. Check out the magic of Frontline Base. It lets me summon a Level 4 or below monster this turn. And I have just the one, W-Wing Catapult."

A moment after Chazz finished speaking, a blue jet platform appeared on the field (A: 1300/D: 1500).

"Gentlemen, start your engines," Chazz ordered and both the blue platform and the tiger flew toward each other. "Now merge."

The catapult revealed two missile launchers that the tiger jet landed on and thruster units appeared on the back of both monsters (A: 2000/D: 2100).

"All right, the VW-Tiger Catapult."

"Yeah, this isn't good," Xander said.

"Uh, mind filling us in?" Syrus asked.

"It's a Union monster fusion," Bastion said.

"But wait, I'm not done yet because he still has his Special Ability," Chazz said.

"Is this guy's turn going to end sometime this century?" Syrus protested.

"Tell me about it," Raisa agreed.

"By sending a card to the Graveyard, I can force one of your monsters into Attack Mode."

Clayman stood up.

"So, after this, Heat-Seeker Blitz from my Tiger Catapult, your Life Points are toast."

The Tiger Catapult fired its missiles, destroying Clayman and taking out a chunk of Jaden's life points.

**Chazz: 4000**

**Jaden: 2800**

"I'll finish up with one card face down," Chazz said, placing a card face down on his duel disk.

**. . .**

Crowler grinned as he watched this from the special viewing box where he was with Chancellor Sheppard. "My goodness," he said with mock sincerity while he hid his grin from the Chancellor. "Looks like Jaden can't play with the big boys after all. I guess he's not as good as he thinks. Even his brother is better than him."

Sheppard didn't respond to that and just kept watching the duel.

**. . .**

"You go ahead and finish up while I'm just getting warmed up," Jaden said, drawing a card. "Speaking of, here's a guy who can really turn up the heat, Elemental Hero Sparkman in Defense Mode."

Jaden placed the card on his duel disk and the blue-and-gold armored hero appeared crouched on the field with his arms crossed in front of him.

"And I'll throw down a facedown."

"Not much else he can do with all those new rare cards Chazz seems to have," Bastion said.

Xander said nothing. _I really hope Chazz doesn't have i_t, he thought.

**. . .**

Alexis was watching the duel as well and she couldn't help but shake her head at it. _This is a complete mismatch. How can Jaden fight back if he doesn't know what he's fighting?_ She thought.

**. . .**

Chazz drew another card before smirking at Jaden. "Ready for round two, Slifer Slime?" he said coolly before a blue-and-yellow machine with a spiked ball for a body appeared; it had two cannon barrels on its shoulders (A: 1800/D: 1500). "Well, X-Head Cannon is and, thanks to Frontline Base, so is Z-Metal Tank." A yellow-and-green tank appeared on the field now (A: 1500/D: 1300).

"Wait, if he has X and Z," Syrus said. "That can only mean one thing."

"Now I play my face-down card," Chazz said, pressing a button on his disk and his Trap Card was revealed. "Call of the Haunted and, in case you slept through that class as well, it lets me bring a monster back from the Graveyard. And I choose…" He trailed off and smirked as a red metallic dragon appeared on the field (A: 1500/D: 1600).

"He has it," Bastion said.

"It's him," Syrus gasped.

"This is not good," Xander said.

"That's right and no it isn't, Ra reject. It's Y-Dragon Head," Chazz said, briefly glancing over at Xander, having overheard his words. "I discarded it with my Tiger Catapult's Special Ability. And next I'll combine them to create the XYZ-Dragon Cannon."

The three monsters flew into the air before locking onto each other in order with X on top and Z on the bottom (A: 2800/D: 2600).

"Now Chazz has two monsters out with over 2000 Attack Points each," Bastion said.

"Chazz could end this duel right now," Raisa said.

"I'm sure Jaden's got something up his sleeve," Xander said.

"I hope so," Syrus said.

"But wait, Jaden, there's more," Chazz said and Jaden gasped while Xander groaned, knowing full well what was coming next. "Actually, less. You see, they say that two heads are better than one, but I would have to disagree, especially when the one in question is the ultimate V to Z Dragon Catapult Cannon."

A moment later, VW-Tiger Catapult locked together with XYZ-Dragon Cannon and they transformed to somewhat resemble a mechanical humanoid with large red wings (A: 3000/D: 2800).

Chazz smirked again. "Makes your Sparkman look like a spark plug, or at least it did," he said right before Sparkman disappeared.

"My Sparkman!" Jaden cried.

"Oh I'm sorry, didn't I mention V to Z's Special Ability? He allows me to remove one card on your side of the field once per turn," Chazz said before he chuckled. "And if you think that's impressive, wait until you see its attack, an attack that will strike your Life Points directly."

Jaden pressed a button on his duel disk. "Not so fast, Chazz. I have a Trap, A Hero Emerges," he said.

"See? Told you Jay had something up his sleeve," Xander said.

'_Jaden alwaysss hasss sssomething up hisss sssleeve_,' Cloud Snake hissed as she appeared, coiling around Xander's neck.

Xander glanced at the white snake. "Why'd you wait until now to show up?" he whispered.

'_I only came out becaussse Sssand was annoying me,_' Cloud Snake hissed back.

Chazz looked confused. "A Hero what?" he echoed.

"Emerges," Jaden explained. "As in emerges onto the field. You see, now you have to choose a card from my hand and if it's a monster card, I get to play it. So take your pick, Chazz," Jaden said.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, the far right."

Jaden looked at the card Chazz chose before smiling. "Sweet, Elemental Hero Burstinatrix, I'll play her in Defense Mode," he said and the fiery heroine in the red bodysuit appeared before kneeling down on the field (A: 1200/D: 800).

"That's what you think, you Slifer Slacker," Chazz said with a smirk. "When Dragon Catapult Cannon attacks, I get to switch one of our monsters to Attack Mode, which means not only will she get zapped"—Chazz paused as Burstinatrix stood and Dragon Catapult Canon fired a bolt of lightning at her, causing her to cry out as she was destroyed—"But your Life Points will, too."

**Chazz: 4000**

**Jaden: 1000**

"Aww, what's the matter, Jaden? Having some test anxiety?" Chazz taunted while the audience gasped. "I knew scum like you didn't' belong at this academy, but don't worry because it will all be over soon."

Jaden shook his head. "No way, Chazz. I still have a whole army of vicious monsters in my deck, ready to get at you. This isn't over, it's only just barely started," he said before he drew a card and gasped before smiling when he saw it.

"Wonder what he drew," Raisa said, noticing the smile.

"Probably something that he can use to win this duel," Xander said.

"You still think he can win?" Syrus asked.

"I never doubted him for a second."

"What do you think, Winged Kuriboh?" Jaden asked, looking at the card and hearing a faint _coo_. "Well, all right, if you say so, let's do it. I summon Winged Kuriboh in Defense Mode." A moment later, the ball of fur with wings appeared on the field (A: 300/D: 200).

"Aww, it's so cute," most of the females in the audience, Raisa was no exception, gushed.

'_Looksss like food_,' Cloud Snake hissed. '_Can I eat it?_'

Xander rolled his eyes before shaking his head and Cloud Snake hissed out a complaint.

"And then I'll throw down a face-down and that's it," Jaden said.

"That's it?" Syrus asked. "All he's done is play defense."

"That's really all he can do," Nick admitted.

_I hope you know what you're doing,_ Xander thought.

**. . .**

_I sure hope Jaden knows what he's doing, _Alexis thought from where she was, still watching the duel, wondering exactly what the Slifer was planning.

**. . .**

"That's all?" Chazz said, raising an eyebrow. "Good, because now I get to cook that Kuriboh and I like mine well done."

'_But I wanted to eat it_,' Cloud Snake hissed in protest to which Xander rolled his eyes again.

"There's about to be a fried fur ball on the field, you loser," Chazz added.

"You don't scare me," Jaden retorted.

"I don't have to. That's his job." Chazz jerked his thumb toward the Dragon Catapult Cannon. "Dragon Catapult Cannon, attack."

Once again, a bolt of lightning shot across the field, heading straight toward Winged Kuriboh.

_Secret weapon time, _Jaden thought.

"Not so fast, Chazz," he said, slipping two cards into his Graveyard slot. "By sending two cards to the Graveyard, I can activate my face-down card: Transcendent Wings."

**. . .**

Up in the viewing box, Crowler was shocked, to say the least, that the Slifer Slacker was using a rare card. "Where did he get that?" he cried.

Sheppard ignored Crowler's cry, as did everyone else in the viewing box.

**. . .**

Winged Kuriboh's wings grew larger and more luminescent, deflecting the blast.

"It can't be!" Chazz protested.

"Oh it be," Jaden said with a smile. "Transcendent Wings has evolved Winged Kuriboh into a Level 10 monster."

Other than the large, angelic and luminescent wings, Winged Kuriboh also had a dragon-shaped helmet over its small face, though his Attack and Defense remained the same.

"And it gets better," Jaden said. "By sacrificing itself, Winged Kuriboh destroys all monsters in Attack Mode and deflects their Attack Points back as damage to you. Kuriboh, show him how it's done."

The blast that Winged Kuriboh's wings had deflected shot back toward the Dragon Catapult Canon and destroyed it, along with a large chunk of Chazz's Life Points.

**Chazz: 1000**

**Jaden: 1000**

"Lucky punk," Chazz said, glaring at Jaden.

"Lucky?" Jaden repeated.

"There's no such thing as luck," Xander said.

Jaden, overhearing, smacked his forehead. _Trust Xander to bring in a Star Wars reference_, he thought.

"Huh, I never knew you liked Star Wars," Raisa said.

Xander shrugged. "Star Wars was what inspired my Star Force cards," he said.

"I'm not lucky, Chazz. I just happen to have a soft spot for old ladies," Jaden said. "But not for you and that's too bad because, with a thousand Life Points apiece and my turn coming up, all I need is the right monster and you'll be finished."

"Serves Chazz right; he had it won with just those two monsters separately," Bastion said. "But his arrogance got in the way."

"You can say that again," Xander said.

"Here goes something," Jaden said before he drew a card and grinned. "Yes! Elemental Hero Avian."

The feathered green Elemental Hero appeared on the field (A: 1000/D: 1000).

Jaden pointed to Chazz before adding, "Attack!"

The winged hero flew forward before slashing at Chazz, taking out the rest of his Life Points.

**Chazz: 0**

**Jaden: 1000 WINNER**

"He did it!" Syrus cheered.

"Way to go, bro!" Xander shouted.

**. . .**

Crowler leaned against the glass, still staring in shock at the dueling arena. "Impossible!" he cried. "Not with all the rare cards I gave Chazz. This simply can't be."

"Rare cards? What exactly are you talking about, Crowler?" Sheppard asked, reminding Crowler that he was there.

Nervously, Crowler said, "Uh, nothing, I, uh, have to go grade some tests," before walking quickly away, ignoring Sheppard who chuckled.

**. . .**

Jaden waved at the crowd who was cheering him before giving Chazz a two finger salute. "That's game," he said, "unless you want to duel again."

"Oh, we will," Chazz said angrily.

"Jaden!"

Jaden turned as Syrus, Bastion, Xander and a tall Ra jogged over to join him.

"_That was well done, Jaden_," Chancellor Sheppard stated over the intercom. "_Never in the history of our revered academy has a Slifer ever dueled an Obelisk at these exams. Not only did you hold your own, but you won. Your courage against overwhelming odds is…inspiring. It is with great pride that I grant you the promotion to Ra Yellow. Good job._"

The audience began cheering again while Xander threw an arm around Jaden's shoulders and Syrus threw his arms around Jaden's waist.

"You're the best, Jaden," Syrus said.

"I do what I can," Jaden said, smiling.

"Uh huh. Welcome to Ra, bro," Xander said.

"And let me be the second to welcome you to the Ra dorm," Bastion said, holding out a hand.

"Thanks," Jaden said, shaking Bastion's hand.

"Awesome match, Jaden," the tall Ra said.

"Thanks, um…" Jaden trailed off before looking at Xander.

"This is Nick. He was my opponent today," Xander said. "Nick, Jaden."

"Nice to meet ya," Nick said.

"You too," Jaden said.

**. . .**

At the Slifer Dorm, later that night, Chumley had just learned that Jaden got promoted and was now considering searching for a new roommate, though he had to deal with stopping Syrus from moping around first.

"Hey, Syrus, if you're gonna mope around, you might as well make me a grilled cheese," he said.

"I just thought Jaden would say goodbye to us, at least," Syrus said.

"Hey, who's talking about saying goodbyes?"

Both Slifers turned to find Jaden leaning against the doorway, still dressed in his red blazer. Syrus jumped out of his bed. "Jaden? What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I wanted to say congrats on passing your field test since I never got a chance earlier. Also, in case you've forgotten, I live here," Jaden said, resting his hands on his hips.

"What?" Now Syrus was confused.

Jaden shrugged. "Sure, Ra Yellow has nice: clean sheets, lack of cockroaches, those spiffy blazers and my brother but, without you, Syrus, it didn't feel like home. Xan understood; I think he's starting to see you as a little brother, too."

Syrus sniffed and jumped at him, tears falling from his eyes as he hugged the taller boy.

Jaden, startled, struggled to get Syrus to let go of him. "Hey. Easy, Syrus, you're getting my jacket soaked!" he protested.

Syrus looked up. "I thought…I thought I lost you forever. Now I'm never letting go," he declared.

Jaden had the sudden urge to smack his head against the doorframe. "Just chill out, Syrus. Come on, get off!" he protested, still struggling to get the little Slifer to let go of him and ignoring Chumley, who was laughing.

**. . .**

"It's a shame that Jaden turned down the offer. He deserved that promotion," Bastion commented. He, Nick and Xander were seated at one of the tables in the meal hall of Ra Yellow.

"Jaden's gotten close to Syrus since we started here," Xander said, sipping at his can of soda. "He sees Syrus as a little brother."

"Really?" Nick asked.

Xander nodded. "He was considering staying here, though, since it'd be just like old times for us but he finally decided to stay with the Slifers," he said. He put the can down on the table before adding, "Besides, frankly, color doesn't matter."

"I hear you," Nick said nodding.

**. . .**

Meanwhile, in the Obelisk dorm, Chazz was moping around, furious with his defeat at the hands of the Slifer Slacker known as Jaden Yuki.

"Stupid Slifer, you lucky punk," he growled. "I'll show you who's superior around here."

**. . .**

**A/n what do you think?**

**Blaze: MAN! That was a long chapter! I hope I didn't bore anyone but I did do three duels in one so I guess it's not that bad**

**Darth: it was a good chapter**

**Blaze: yup so the next chapter is going to be really fun**

**Darth: what's gonna happen?**

**Titan: hi**

**Blaze: (stabs Titan with lightsaber and pushes him into magma pit) my first tag duel ever! Jaden and Xander versus Titan and an OC by the name of Steele plus the appearance of decode9's OC**

**Darth: cool**

**Titan: ow! What the heck is the…?**

**Blaze: (shocks Titan with Force Lightning and pushes him back into magma pit)**

**Jaden: what the…? How'd you do that?!**

**Blaze: erm, no comment. Here's the card list for the Star Force cards that Xander used.**

_Stasis_

TRAP

When a monster with "Star Force" in its name in Defense Mode is attacked: Negate the attack, switch the Battle Positions of all attacking monster and end the Battle Phase.

_Star Force Shadow Knight_

DARK

6

Warrior

ATK: 2000

DEF: 1900

_Saber of Light_

EQUIP SPELL

Equip only to a DARK- or LIGHT-attribute Warrior-type monster. It gains 800 ATK. When the equipped monster is destroyed by battle and this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: Inflict 800 damage to your opponent.

_Star Force Dark Consular_

DARK

4

Warrior-effect

ATK: 1300

DEF: 1200

Once per turn: You can target one face-up Spell Card on the field; remove it from play.

_Star Force Ice Phoenix_

LIGHT

4

Winged beast-effect

ATK: 1700

DEF: 1500

When destroyed in battle, you gain Life Points equal to this card's original Defense Points

_Star Force Shadow Dragon_

DARK

8

Dragon-effect

ATK: 3500

DEF: 3000

This card gains 500 Attack Points for every "Star Force" monster in the Graveyard. If destroyed by battle, you take extra damage equal to the extra points that were added to the original Attack Points

**Blaze: well, as of right now, this is my longest chapter **_**ever**_** so I'll guess we'll just have to wait and see whether there are more**

**Darth: are anymore OCs going to make an appearance?**

**Blaze: we'll get another appearance by that prat Akio**

**Darth: can I push him into a magma pit?**

**Blaze: no. Please review and I will post chapter 6 as soon as I possibly can and I hope you aren't too overwhelmed by the long chapter.**


	7. Chapter Six

**Thank you to **_**JxA fan 2000**_**, **_**IfTimeWasStill**_**, **_**Nightshade07**_** and **_**decode9**_** for reviewing the last chapter. Here is the first part of the tag duel in the Abandoned Dorm; it was split into two chapters and still ended up being over 10,000 words. Ah well. Either way, I'm also going to be posting a oneshot that will be like a prequel to a new story I'm working out the ideas for. It'll be called **_**Prelude to the Storm**_** and is currently being beta-read by **_**EndlessNight025**_**.**

**Also, _decode9_, I hope you liked how I portrayed Sean.**

**Also, a huge thank you to **_**EndlessNight025**_** for being a wonderful beta-reader. Here is chapter six and I hope that you like it and yes, there is a cliff hanger. Frankly, it's about time I included one in this story.**

**Chapter Six**

The Abandoned Dorm was forbidden to all students and there was a reason why it was forbidden. It lay in the forest surrounded by many trees and there was an eerie feeling that seemed to permeate the air around it. Few, if anyone, ever came near it after the disappearance of many students the year before but Alexis Rhodes was not one of those few.

She approached the Abandoned Dorm, holding a single rose in one hand as she gazed at the dorm sadly before she knelt down in front of it. "Be at peace, brother, wherever you are," she whispered, placing the rose next to the gates before she stood up and walked away.

**. . .**

Meanwhile, at the Slifer Dorm meal hall, Raisa, Syrus, Jaden and Chumley were seated around a table, listening to ghost stories. The Slifers had decided to start telling ghost stories based on cards; the higher the level of card you drew, the scarier your story had to be. It was currently Syrus's turn.

"I went out into the woods and, underneath the full moon, I see a path leading to a cavern that seems…abandoned," Syrus was saying.

"Oh really?" Jaden said, looking interested. "And then what?"

"Then, at the back of the cavern, I see a mysterious lake. So I go in to look very carefully. And under just the right angle of light, at the very bottom of the lake beyond my reflection, I see a rare and powerful card. Naturally, I go to get it, but when I reach out for it, an arm shoots out of the water, grabs me and begins to pull me into the lake! Ahh! Help me! Not the water! Not the water!"

Raisa frowned but Jaden spoke before she could.

"Water's not so scary," the Elemental Hero duelist said.

"Not even dirty swamp water?" Syrus asked.

"Nope," Raisa said.

The Vehicroid duelist sighed. "You're right, only a chump would be afraid of a story like that," he said.

All of them were unaware that Chumley had taken a position in the far corner of the room.

"Still, good story," Jaden said before picking up the level four monster called Earthbound Spirit. "Mid-level scares for a mid-level card."

"Hey, guys."

Syrus jumped while Jaden glanced over his shoulder to find Xander making his way over to join them.

"What're you doing here, Xan?" he asked curiously.

"Just decided to see what you were up to and I was bored," Xander said with a shrug. "Mind if I join ya?"

"No problem."

Xander sat down beside Raisa. "So what're we doing?"

"Scary stories," Raisa said.

"The higher the level of card you pick, the scarier your story has to be," Jaden explained.

"Ah, sounds like what we used to do when we were camping with Mom and Dad when we were younger," the Star Force duelist commented.

"Yeah. Why don't you go now, Xan?"

"All right." Xander reached over to the deck before drawing a level six monster. He placed it on the table before looking thoughtful. "Okay, I think I got one. A couple was lost in a forest at night while it was raining. Wanting to get out of the rain, the couple found an abandoned old house in the middle of the forest and they sought shelter inside it. The house was falling apart, though, but at least it was a roof over their heads. However, only a few hours after they entered the house, they started hearing voices; at first they thought it was the wind but then the voices began to grow louder."

"Voices? What kind of voices?" Syrus asked warily, as if afraid of the answer.

Xander shrugged. "Just voices. There were so many of them that they seemed to blend in with each other and the couple couldn't make out a single thing they were saying. Then the giggling sounded and the couple saw glowing eyes peering at them from the top of the staircase they had been standing beside."

Syrus shivered.

Xander went on, "The couple couldn't make out what the figure looked like; it was as if the person's body was made of shadows with only the glowing eyes visible. The giggling seemed to be coming from that figure as it began walking toward them; the closer the figure got, the louder the giggling became. The air around them started to get colder while the voices faded away, leaving only silence, except for the giggling.

"The figure finally came to a stop at the base of the stairs, standing in front of the terrified couple and a hand stretched out toward them; a skeletal hand with pieces of flesh still attached to the bones."

Raisa grimaced in disgust at the description.

"The figure's giggling grew stronger before it whispered 'won't you be my friend?' and plunged its skeletal hand straight into the girl's chest, causing her to scream. The guy did the first thing that he could think of and grabbed his girlfriend pulling her away from the shadowy creature only for the girl to vanish like mist in sunlight, leaving nothing behind.

"The boy, terrified, bolted, heading for the door but the shadowy figure was faster and beat him to the door, still giggling, its glowing eyes alit with excitement and malice. 'Let's play,' it said and grabbed the guy but he broke free and fled from the house into the storm. He never returned to that house; as for the girl, she was never seen again."

Syrus was under the table while Chumley remained in the corner while the others looked mildly interested in the story.

"Well, that was a good story," Jaden commented. "I think it was worth six stars."

"I think so too," Raisa said with a shiver. "Did you just make that up on the spot?"

Xander hesitated. "Somewhat," he admitted. "Most of it was made up; some of it was based a little on my childhood."

"You mean you got attacked by shadowy creatures in an abandoned house?" Syrus echoed, poking his head out from under the table.

The older twin chuckled. "Nah, that wasn't true but Jay and I have been lost in a forest before because someone wasn't paying attention and we ended up walking right past our campsite," he said, glaring at Jaden, who smiled sheepishly.

"Well, it's your turn, Jaden," he added.

"All right. I only hope I can get a high number so I can tell a story like…" Jaden trailed off as he drew a level one creature. "Dang!"

"Aw, you lucked out," Syrus said—he sounded relieved—as he came out from under the table while Chumley walked back to the table. "You don't have to scare us at all."

Jaden put the card down and shrugged. "Well, I think I have a story that might do the trick," he said. "Actually, it's more of a memory. Back when Xan and I were little kids, I used to hear sounds but I only heard them way late at night. I thought I was dreaming but when I heard them, they sounded like voices but not ones that I recognized. I would go into the playroom to investigate with Xan but when we did, there was nothing there at all, except my cards."

"And…?"

"And that's the end of the story."

Syrus and Chumley groaned.

Xander shrugged. "It fit the level," he said. He remembered that incident before as well, though he never told Jaden that he had heard those voices too. He had just thought he was hearing things, too.

"But want to hear something strange?" Jaden asked. "Lately, I've started hearing them again."

_Why is it that I started to hear and see duel spirits before him?_ Xander wondered silently.

_It seems like he can hear duel spirits, as I'm pretty sure that's what he's talking about, too, _Raisa thought.

"Hahaha!" a laugh sounded behind Jaden. "I want to get in on the fright fest!"

"Gah!" Syrus shouted, falling out of the seat he had just recently retaken while Xander and Raisa jumped and Chumley returned to his corner. But it was just Professor Banner carrying Pharaoh.

"You kinda just did," Xander said, relaxing as Syrus got back into his seat.

"Yeah, we're kinda on the edge of our seats here," Jaden said.

"Or we were," Syrus said. "But since you're here, why don't you draw a card? The tougher it is, the scarier it is."

"Well, that sounds easy enough," Banner said, drawing a card only for it to be revealed to be Five Headed Dragon, which had the highest level possible.

"Level twelve? Man, I'm probably going to end up with more nightmares," Xander muttered, not realizing Jaden overheard him until his brother glanced at him.

"More?" he repeated.

Xander didn't respond.

"I think I'm going to bed now," Syrus said.

"But don't you want to hear about the abandoned dorm?" Banner asked.

"Abandoned dorm?" Jaden, Syrus, Xander and Raisa asked at once.

Banner pulled up a chair and sat down beside Jaden. "Did you know that there are actually four dorms on the island?"

The boys—and one girl—shook their heads.

"You only know of the three named after the Egyptian God Monsters but, back when this school was first constructed, a special fourth dorm was created. This dorm was made for those who were as good as Obelisk Blue but weren't exactly like the other Obelisks in terms of how they acted. In fact, it was called the Millennium House."

"Really?" Raisa asked.

Banner nodded. "Nobody talks about it anymore because they shut it down when several students started to go missing."

"Where did they go?" Syrus asked.

"Well, that's the mystery of it," Banner replied. "But rumor has it that it had something to do with Shadow Games."

"Shadow Games?" Raisa echoed. "That sounds familiar."

"Thanks, you can stop now," Chumley said pleadingly from behind another table.

"You see, children, Shadow Games are duels that are played with mystical objects called Millennium Items. Remember, we discussed this in class today?"

"Jaden doesn't," Xander said before wincing when Jaden kicked him under the table for that remark.

"But yeah, I remember. Duel Monsters started in Ancient Egypt," the Star Force duelist added.

"That's correct. But the Egyptians, their form of dueling was in Shadow Games. And if you lost, you got sent to the Shadow Realm; a mystical place that feeds on the darkness and fear of those who enter it. According to legend, Shadow Deals were very lethal and some even led to deaths."

"And what does that have to do with the abandoned dorm?" Jaden asked.

"Does it have something to do with why it's called the Millennium House?" asked Raisa.

"Correct. It was originally built to study the Millennium Items and the Shadow Games. But then a team of researchers also started disappearing so the rest were afraid that investigating it would lead to them being trapped forever in the Shadow Realm. When Kaiba Corporation first established this school, they made it into the dorm but then the students who roomed there disappeared as well so they shut it down."

"Come on," Jaden said dismissively. "Millennium Items, Shadow Games, this stuff can't possibly be true."

Banner adjusted his glasses as he chuckled. "Well, that's what most people say but as the saying goes, in every fable exists a grain of truth."

Pharaoh yawned.

"Well, I think that's my cue to get back to my room. Good night, children," Banner said and left.

"Good night, professor," the group called after him.

Xander pulled out his duel pilot and looked at the map of the island. "That must be what that building that was X'd out of the map is," he said.

"Sweet. Then you can lead the way for us tomorrow night," said Jaden.

"Hey, could be fun," Xander said, smiling.

"What do you mean tomorrow night?" Syrus asked.

"What do you mean 'us'?" Chumley echoed.

"It'll be fun," Jaden said.

"And we might find out what happened to all those missing people," Xander added.

"Took the words right outta my mouth, Xan."

Xander smiled before looking at Raisa. "You with us?" he asked.

Raisa seemed to hesitate. "I'll think about it," she said finally.

"Okay."

**. . .**

Meanwhile, eavesdropping from outside the door, Crowler had heard the entire thing. "This is just the opportunity I've been waiting for. I can get rid of both of them this way," he said, excited. "I think it's time the Shadow Games made a comeback, Millennium Items and all."

He walked away from the Slifer Dorm, thinking of just the people to enlist.

**. . .**

A duel was wrapping up in an alleyway in Domino City. One of the participants was terrified and wanted to do anything to get out of the duel. "Okay, you win. Just take whatever you want and go," he said.

"What I want," a man with a metal mask over his face dressed in a long trench coat with a duel disk similar to the one Crowler wore but with a tray on his sleeve, "is your soul." He held up a golden upside down pyramid with an eye in its center; the pyramid started to glow.

"Please, show some mercy! Let me go," the participant cried.

The man was emotionless as the pyramid began to spread around the man. "Show mercy? What is that?" he asked as the gold turned white as the opponent screamed, fell over and scattered the cards in his deck.

"Rest in peace, in the shadows," he said before he walked over to his opponent to make sure his opponent was down. He then glanced over at his partner to see that he had finished up with his opponent as well.

Then his cell phone rang. Opening it, he said, "speak" before listening to the person. "Duel Academy, tomorrow night, we'll be there." He hung up and smirked.

"Another job?" his partner asked, walking over to join him.

"Indeed, there is," the masked man said. "It's going to be some fun for both of us."

**. . .**

The next day, during class, Jaden and Syrus were fast asleep during Banner's class, Xander was contemplating tossing a pencil at his brother's head again while Raisa was thinking about whether to go with the group to the Abandoned Dorm or not.

None of them were aware of Crowler watching them.

_This will be the last time you sleep in on a class, Slifer Slacker,_ he thought before looking at Xander who was resting his head on his hand, still taking notes. _And you, it's time I finally got you back for defeating me. Both of you'll have your real lesson on the Shadow Games._

**. . .**

Raisa left the main building after classes ended that day before walking toward the Slifer Dorm, still going over whether she wanted to go with her new friends to the Abandoned Dorm or not.

"Hey, Slifer Slime!" a shout sounded and Raisa stopped before turning to find Akio walking toward her.

"What do you want?" the Lightsworn duelist asked.

"I want to duel ya. You lucked out the last time we fought but that ain't gonna happen this time. I'm gonna beat ya, Slacker, unless you're too scared to take me on," Akio taunted.

Raisa ignored the taunt as she turned around and began walking again, not rising to the bait.

"Hey, don't turn your back on me!" Akio shouted. "Show some respect for your superiors."

Raisa said nothing and kept on walking.

"Fine, run away like a coward. You and your pathetic deck couldn't beat me anyway," Akio sneered.

"My deck beat you so it's not pathetic," Raisa snapped, turning to glare at the Obelisk.

"Sure it is. You just got lucky. You're nothing more than a pathetic amateur and your deck is just as bad."

'_Let's_ _kick his butt again, why don't we?_' Ma'at suggested, appearing at Raisa's side.

_Coo_, Kuribon agreed, appearing on Raisa's shoulders.

"I see you're picking on the Slifers again, Akio," a new voice said before the purple-haired girl could accept the Obelisk's challenge. She and Akio glanced toward it to where a short Obelisk boy with chocolate brown hair, dark blue eyes and a pair of dark blue rimmed goggles around his neck stood.

"Stay outta this, Sean. This has got nothing to do with ya," Akio said, glaring at him. "I'm just about to send this amateur running home to mama."

"Don't you got better things to do than pick on a Slifer?" the Obelisk boy—Sean—asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I said to stay out of this, midget. Why don't you go join your dwarf friends and stop getting into something that's none of your business?" Akio snapped.

Sean's eyes flashed at that. "Oh, you just made it my business, Akio," he growled. "Mind if I duel this punk in your place?" He looked at Raisa as he said that.

The girl shrugged. "Knock yourself out," she said.

Akio smirked. "Fine, I'll beat ya and then I'll beat this piece of scum too," he said, activating his duel disk and Sean did so as well while Raisa moved until she was on the sidelines.

"Let's duel!"

**Akio: 4000**

**Sean: 4000**

"I'll start, midget," Akio said, drawing his sixth card. "And I summon Marauding Captain to my field in Attack Mode."

A moment later, the blond armored soldier from Raisa's duel with Akio appeared, wielding a sword in each hand (A: 1200/D: 400).

"And I activate his Special Ability to summon a level 4 or below monster from my hand and I choose my Altitude Knight," Akio said, placing the card on his tray and an armored man with a red cloak and brown hair appeared on the field next to Marauding Captain (A: 1400/D: 1200).

"And I'll place two cards facedown and that's it," Akio said.

"All right, my draw," Sean said, drawing a card before looking at it and adding it to his hand. "And I summon Elemental Hero Stratos to my field in Attack Mode." A moment after Sean placed the card on his disk, a warrior with silver and blue armor and silver wings with fans in them appeared on the field (A: 1800/D: 300).

_Another duelist using Elemental Heroes? Jaden'll probably like to know about this,_ Raisa thought.

"And then I activate Stratos's Special Ability and move one Elemental Hero from my deck to my hand," Sean added, moving Elemental Hero Heat from his deck to his hand. "Now, Stratos, attack Marauding Captain with Heroic Wind Strike."

A moment later, Stratos shot into the air before flying toward Marauding Captain.

"I activate my face-down, Waboku. Now my monster isn't destroyed and I take no damage," Akio said, pressing a button on her deck to reveal his face down. Stratos struck Marauding Captain before returning to Sean's side of the field.

"I place one card facedown and end my turn," Sean said, placing the card on his disk.

"And my turn," Akio said before he held out a card. "First, I summon Big Shield Gardna in Defense Mode."

The dark-haired warrior appeared, kneeling down and hiding behind his shield (A: 100/D: 2600).

"And then I play the Equip Spell Lightning Blade before equipping it to Altitude Knight. This increases the equipped monster's Attack Points by 800."

A moment after he placed the card on the disk, a blade with lightning coiling around it appeared in Altitude Knight's hand (A: 1400-2200/D: 1200).

"Now, Altitude Knight, attack Stratos with Atmosphere Strike," Akio ordered and Altitude Knight sprang toward Stratos.

"I activate my Trap, Mirror Force. Now, all of your monsters in Attack Position are destroyed," Sean said, revealing the Trap Card and Akio scowled as the shield appeared around Stratos; the blade in Altitude Knight's hand crashed into it and it shattered, sending shrapnel toward both Altitude Knight and Marauding Captain, destroying them both.

"I end my turn," Akio said with a growl.

"My turn then," Sean said, drawing a card. "And I summon Elemental Hero Lady Heat to my field in Attack Mode."

He placed the card on his disk and a female warrior in white and red bodysuit with blonde hair and an orange-red skirt appeared on the field (A: 1300/D: 1000).

"And I end my turn with one card facedown, which activates Lady Heat's Special Ability. Now you get dealt 200 points of damage per Elemental Hero on the field," Sean finished and Lady Heat created two balls of flames in her hands and tossed them at Akio, knocking out some of his Life Points.

**Akio: 3600**

**Sean: 4000**

"My turn," Akio said, drawing a card. "And I summon Command Knight in Attack Mode."

An armored female with blonde hair and a sword in her hand appeared on the field (A: 1200-1600D: 1900).

"And now, not only can't Command Knight be targeted so long as I control another monster but all Warrior-type monsters on my field gain 400 Attack Points." (Big A: 100-500/D: 2600).

"Now, Command Knight, attack Lady Heat," Akio ordered and Sean shielded himself as Command Knight's blade sliced through Lady Heat, causing her to cry out in pain as she was destroyed.

**Akio: 3600**

**Sean: 3700**

"By destroying Lady Heat, you activated my Trap; Hero Counterattack," Sean said, revealing the Trap on his field. "Now, you have to pick one of my cards and if it's an Elemental Hero, I can target and destroy one of your monsters and summon the chosen monster."

Akio narrowed his eyes. "Fine, I choose the far left," he said.

Sean looked at it before smiling and holding out the card. "You chose Elemental Hero Heat. Now I can destroy one of your monsters and I choose Big Shield Gardna," he said and Akio's Big Shield Gardna shattered. "Then I can summon Heat to my field in Attack Mode."

A moment later, the white and red armored warrior appeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1200).

"And his Special Ability allows him to gain 200 Attack Points for everyone Elemental Hero on the field, including himself," Sean added as Heat was powered up (A: 1600-2000/D: 1200).

Akio scowled. "I end my turn," he said.

"My turn then," Sean said, drawing a card and smirked. "First, I'm playing Monster Reborn to bring back Lady Heat in Attack Mode."

A moment later, the female warrior in the red and white armor reappeared on the field (A: 1300/D: 1000) (Heat A: 2000-2200).

"Now, Heat, attack Command Knight, Fire Strike."

Heat dashed toward Command Knight and struck her, causing her to shatter and deal damage to Akio's Life Points.

**Akio: 3000**

**Sean: 3700**

"Stratos, attack Akio directly," Sean ordered and Stratos flew into the air before flying towards Akio, striking him in the face, causing him to stumble backwards again.

**Akio: 1200**

**Sean: 3700**

"And finally, Lady Heat, attack Akio directly and end the duel," Sean said and Lady Heat unleashed a ball of flames that struck Akio and knocked him down, taking out the rest of his Life Points.

**Akio: 0**

**Sean: 3700 WINNER**

"Looks like you lose again, Akio," Sean said, powering down his duel disk as the holographic images of his monsters vanished.

Akio scowled as he got to his feet before stalking away.

"Nice duel. I've only ever seen a duel with Elemental Heroes when Jaden duels," Raisa commented, looking down shyly when Sean glanced toward her.

"Jaden?" the Obelisk repeated.

The Lightsworn duelist nodded. "Jaden Yuki, he's a Slifer like me."

"Huh, so Jaden did get in. I thought he would," Sean commented.

"You know him?"

"Yeah, and his brother," the short Obelisk admitted. "We grew up in the same town and attended the same school but, after my parents were killed, my sister and I went to go live in Germany. I lost contact with Jaden and his brother after that."

"Oh."

"Yeah. I wonder if they even remember me," Sean mused. "Hey, if you're heading back to the Slifer Dorm, mind if I come with?"

"No, I don't mind," Raisa said softly and the two of them began walking toward the Slifer Dorm.

**. . .**

"Hey, Raisa!"

Raisa jumped with a yelp before whirling to the side and glaring at Xander and Jaden who had appeared quite suddenly behind her when she and Sean entered the meal hall.

Xander gave her a small apologetic smile. "Sorry," he said. "Who's your new…wait, you look familiar." He studied the Obelisk that was standing on Raisa's other side.

"Yeah, he does. Wait, Sean?" Jaden asked, surprised.

Sean smiled. "Hey, you do remember me," he said.

"Kinda hard to forget the kid that uses a deck with the same archetype as mine," Jaden said with a shrug and a smile.

"That and we were friends in school," Xander said. "But what happened, Sean? I mean, our parents just said that you and your sister moved but never said where."

"Yeah, we moved in with our aunt and uncle in Germany," Sean said.

"Oh. So what brings you here?"

"Just thought I drop by and see if you two remembered me at all."

"Hey, Jay, Xan," Syrus said, walking over to join them with Chumley just behind. He paused when he spotted Sean. "Who's this?"

"I'm Sean," the Obelisk said.

"Sean, this is Syrus and that's Chumley," Xander said, gesturing to the short blue-haired Slifer and the koala-like Slifer respectively.

"Nice to meet you guys."

"Hey, Sean, you wanna come with us?" Jaden said suddenly.

"Go with you where?" Sean asked.

"Jaden and I wanna check out the Abandoned Dorm tonight," Xander said. "So, you in?"

The Obelisk Elemental Hero duelist seemed to think about it for a moment before he shrugged. "Okay, I guess."

**. . .**

Later that night, Crowler was standing alone on the docks near the lighthouse, waiting for the arrival of the duelists he had contacted the day before. It seemed to be taking a long time and Crowler was about ready to get up but stopped when he heard footsteps behind him. He turned and found a man in black standing a few feet in front of him with another, shorter man at his side; the first was wearing a black trench coat and a wide-brimmed hat while the second was wearing a black jacket and black pants. Both of them were surrounded by fog.

"So, you're the ones they call the Shadow Duelists," Crowler said.

The taller man smirked. "My opponents' call me many things but most of them are hard to discern through their shrieks of horror. What's the job?" he asked.

Crowler smiled. "I want you to frighten two people so intensely they'll leave this island and never come back. Are you two up to the challenge?"

"Of course we are," the second person said.

"This is my associate, Steele. We never turn our backs on a challenge," the first man said.

"Uh, yes, well, who do I make the check out to?" Crowler asked.

"Titan," the first Shadow Duelist replied. "And we'll make these people face the terrors of the Shadow Realm."

Without another word, the two duelists vanished in the fog.

Crowler watched them go. "Looks like I'm getting my money's worth," he said before he walked away.

**. . .**

"You know, you could think of it as being lost…" Jaden began.

"…or you could think of it as us finding a few…" Xander continued.

"…places where it's not," Jaden finished.

"Not this again," Sean complained. "I thought you two got out of the habit of finishing each other's sentences."

Jaden smirked. "We did…"

"…for a while, anyway," Xander finished.

"How did I get into this mess again?" Raisa wondered, trailing beside Sean at the rear of the group.

"Well, it could be worse, y'know?" Chumley said. "Well, worse for Syrus, anyway."

"How so?"

"We could find a large puddle of dirty swamp water."

Syrus glared at him. "Shut up! Chumley, you're the one who refused to take a bath last night because you were scared of the bath water," he snapped.

"So that's that smell," Sean said.

Jaden and Xander, who were at the head of the group, suddenly stopped, "Hey, guys, check it out," Jaden said, shining his flashlight to find a rose lying on the ground next to a gate hanging on its hinges.

Syrus tugged Jaden's sleeve. "Look what's behind it," he said.

Jaden looked up to see the old, decrepit building with boarded up windows and debris surrounding it. "The old dorm."

"And it's probably got lots of ghosts in there too," Chumley said, moving to the rear of the group.

"Relax, Chumley…" Jaden began.

"…no one's here," Xander finished.

"Will you stop that?" Sean protested and the twins chuckled.

A loud snapping sounded, causing Raisa to jump. "What was that?" she gasped.

The group turned to find Alexis and Nick walking over to join them.

"Hey you two, what're you doing here?" Jaden asked.

Alexis frowned. "Funny, we were about to ask you guys the same thing," she said.

"I saw you leave the dorm, Xander," Nick said.

"Well, we heard…" Jaden began.

"…about the dorm and…" Xander continued.

"…wanted to check it out," Jaden finished.

Sean smacked his forehead.

"When did they start finishing each other's sentences like that?" Alexis asked curiously.

"Today, well a few hours ago, actually," Syrus said.

"Oh but, either way, you shouldn't have come here. Don't you know that kids have a way of disappearing around here?" Alexis said as she and Nick walked closer.

Nick tilted his head to the side. "I didn't know about that," he said.

"So the rumors are true?" asked Raisa.

Jaden waved it away dismissively. "Aw, come on," he began.

"If you finish his statement, I'm going to hit you," Sean snapped, glaring at Xander.

The older Yuki twin smirked but remained silent.

"That's just a myth," Jaden finished his earlier thought.

"Believe me, I know. Why else would the Academy close this place off?" Alexis said.

"Besides, this place is forbidden. We'll get expelled if we're caught here," Nick added.

"Then what are you two doing here?" Xander asked, raising an eyebrow.

The Obelisk Queen's cheeks reddened. "I have my reasons, that's why," she snapped, glaring at the older twin.

Xander looked taken back by the snap. "We just came to look around, Alexis," he said.

"Yeah, don't worry. We'll stay out of your way, I promise," Jaden, also taken aback by Alexis's snap, said.

Alexis sighed and walked over to the gates. "It's just that…" she trailed off.

"Just what?" Syrus asked.

"One of the kids here that disappeared was my brother," Alexis finished quietly.

Jaden and Xander exchanged glances. _That explains the rose,_ they both thought before glancing at Alexis to see her walking away.

"If Alexis's brother really did disappear then the rumors about this place really are true," Raisa said worriedly. _Maybe I should head back_, she thought.

"I say we go back, Jaden, Xander," Syrus said, looking back at the old building.

"Well, I say we go in," Jaden said cheerfully.

"Who knows, could be fun," Xander added.

"Say what?!" Syrus exclaimed.

Jaden, Xander and Chumley walked towards the dorm, their flashlights lighting the way. "See ya later, you guys. Don't disappear on us," Jaden called back.

"Oh, wait up!" Syrus shouted before jogging after the group and Nick watched them go, shrugged and followed him with Sean just behind him.

Raisa shook her head. "Are they afraid of anything?" she wondered aloud.

"Who knows?" Alexis said. "Are you going…?" She trailed off when a shadow suddenly appeared behind her and grabbed her; her scream caused Raisa to jump and whirl around.

"Alexis!" she shouted, noticing that Alexis was nowhere to be seen. Then she felt someone grab her and she cried out only to feel a sharp blow to the head and darkness claimed her.

**. . .**

Sean Kurosagi jumped before whirling around upon hearing the screams. "Did you hear that?" he asked, looking at Nick, who nodded. They were currently standing near the entrance of the Abandoned Dorm and had been about to enter it when they heard the screams.

"That sounded like Alexis and Raisa. They could be in trouble!" the tall Ra exclaimed, waving a hand back the way they had come. "Should we try to find 'em?"

"I don't think that's a good idea," Sean said.

"So what do we do?"

"Catch up with the others and hope Alexis and Raisa are all right?"

Nick sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I guess we can't do much else," he muttered before the two of them entered the dorm and headed in the direction Sean had last seen Jaden and the others.

**. . .**

The inside of the building was just as decrepit as the outside of it. It looked as though a storm had raged through it, destroying practically everything in the rooms and halls.

Jaden laughed. "Sorry, but ya know this place is sweet! I mean, with some fresh paint, a couple of boxes and a throw rug, we could so totally move in here."

"You kidding?" Syrus asked. "This place is worse than the Slifer Dorms. I mean, look at this." The little Slifer pointed to a nearby wall and, on it, were a large amount of symbols and letters carved or painted on. "What the heck is all this?"

"Do you think it has to do with the Shadow Games Banner was talking about?" Chumley wondered, looking at the marks.

Xander—who was closest to them—peered closely at one of the sets. "Hey, you know what? I think this wall shows the seven Millennium Items."

Jaden walked over to stand beside his brother. "Ring, Puzzle, Scale, Key, Rod, Eye, and Necklace, never heard of 'em," he said.

Xander rolled his eyes, shining his flashlight around the area before it landed on another wall with a photograph hanging on it. "And that's someone I've never seen before," he said.

"Xander! Jaden!" Sean said, jogging over to join them.

"What's up, Sean?" Jaden asked.

"Something's happened. Alexis and Raisa are gone!" Nick exclaimed, waving his hand in emphasis.

**. . .**

Alexis woke up in a coffin with her wrists and ankles tied together. Turning her head, she spotted Raisa lying in another coffin beside her. She looked around the area again. "Where am I?" she wondered aloud.

"Where am I?" Raisa asked at the same time.

"Dangling on a hook, just waiting for your friends to fall into our trap," a sinister voice said.

"Jaden," Alexis gasped and then an eye flashed in front of her and she let out a scream at the same time as Raisa.

**. . .**

"What do you mean they're gone?" Xander protested.

"We were about to enter the dorm when we heard them cry out but when we looked back, they were gone," Nick explained, gesturing toward the door as he spoke.

That was when two screams pierced through the air.

"That sounded like Alexis," Jaden cried.

"And Raisa," Xander shouted at the same time before the two of them ran towards the hallway where the scream had come from. The other four followed them down a set of stairs until the twins came to a stop when Xander spotted something; his eyes widened when he saw that it was Celestia, Lightsworn Angel. He bent down and picked it up while Jaden picked up the Cyber Blader card that was on the ground as well.

"One of Alexis's and Raisa's cards," Jaden said when he spotted the card Xander was holding.

"Oh this is bad. We don't even know where they could be," Syrus groaned, pulling at his hair.

Chumley pointed to the side where a dark hallway was leading down. "Only one place they could be," he said.

**. . .**

The group entered a round chamber beneath the dorm to find two figures dressed entirely in black standing nearby; they each stood next to a coffin and, inside each coffin, were an unconscious Alexis and Raisa.

"Hey, let them go," Xander shouted. "Who are you two, anyway?"

"I am Titan," the figure in the black trench coat said.

"And I'm Steele," the shorter dark-clad figure said.

"And if you wish to save them then you'll have to beat us in a Shadow Game," Titan declared, gesturing to the two girls.

Jaden stepped forward. "Look, I'm not afraid of dueling you…" he began.

"…but Shadow Games don't exist," Xander finished.

"I'm not even going to comment on that this time," Sean muttered.

Titan and Steele laughed. "Our foes didn't believe in the Shadow Games either, but they were convinced right before they were sent screaming into the Shadow Realm," Steele said with a smirk.

"So you're the one behind the disappearances! Well, this time is different. You won't take Alexis," Jaden declared.

"Or Raisa," Xander agreed.

"Jaden! Xander!"

The twins turned to see Chumley and Syrus each holding duel disks in their hands before they handed them to the twins.

The twins put the duel disks on before turning to face the Shadow Duelists. "Get your game on," the twins declared at the same time.

Titan and Steele smirked as the two of them activated their own duel disks. "Shadow Game, that is, foolish boys," Titan said.

"And if this is going to be a tag-duel, let's go the traditional route. We each share 8000 Life Points," Steele said.

"Fine by me," Xander said and Jaden nodded in agreement.

"Let's duel!" the four of them declared as they drew their opening hands.

**Titan/Steele: 8000**

**Jaden/Xander: 8000**

"I'll start. Prepare yourselves, fools, to enter the shadows," Titan said, drawing his sixth card. "And I summon forth Infernalqueen Archfiend to my field."

A moment later, a red-eyed skeletal figure swathed in purplish-red and blue robes appeared on the field (A: 900/D: 1500).

"An Archfiend?" Jaden echoed.

"Yes, and because this monster is out, every monster with Archfiend in its name receives an extra 1000 Attack Points," Titan said as his monster powered up (A: 900-1900/D: 1500).

"Yeah, I know that," Jaden said. "But I also know that you have to pay Life Points to keep your Archfiend on the field."

Titan smirked. "No, I don't," he said. "Not after I play the Field Spell, Pandemonium." He slipped the spell into his field card slot and the circular chamber changed until they were in an area with the skeletons of horrid monsters scattered around and bones laced into the walls and the floors as well as a lava pool at its center.

"Whoa, pretty cool," Jaden said.

"Yeah," Xander agreed.

"And it doesn't just change the scenery; it also changes the rules of the game. Now I don't have to pay Life Points in order to keep my Archfiend on the field. Also, if they're destroyed outside of battle, I get to place another Archfiend of a lower level right into my hand."

_Now this'll be harder than normal since he's not losing points from them, _Jaden thought while Chumley and Syrus were shivering.

"I know what you're thinking, foolish boy," Titan said, turning to the motionless forms of Alexis and Raisa. "Your little friends' fates are sealed and you know what?" He paused as the coffins they laid in closed up and disappeared into the ground.

"Alexis!" Jaden shouted.

"Raisa!" Xander shouted.

"That's not fair," Chumley cried.

"What have you done with them?" Syrus demanded.

Steele rolled his eyes. "The same thing he'll do to you two if you keep annoying him," he said.

"Hey, leave our friends out of this," Xander snapped.

"Yeah, we're the ones you're dealing with so leave 'em alone," Jaden said as his turn started. He drew his sixth card and studied them. _I don't have any card that can beat 1900 but maybe…_ His thought trailed off as he said, "Elemental Hero Avian, I summon you in Attack Mode."

The green feathered hero with white wings appeared on the field (A: 1000/D: 1000).

"And I'll end my turn with two face-downs," Jaden added, placing two cards in two of his Spell/Trap card slots.

"And now it's my turn," Steele said, drawing his sixth card. "And since I have no monsters on my field, I can Special Summon Steelswarm Cell to my field in Defense Mode." He placed the card on his disk and a black bug with black wings appeared on the field (A: 0/D: 0).

Xander raised an eyebrow at lack of Attack or Defense Points.

"And then I play two cards face down and end my turn," Steele added.

"All right, my move then," Xander said, deciding to puzzle out why Steele summoned such a weak monster later. "And I summon Star Force Weapons Master to my field in Attack Mode." A moment later, the large robotic humanoid with a rifle in his hands surrounded by an energy field appeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1500).

"Then I play two cards face down and end my turn," Xander added, slipping two cards into two Spell/Trap Card slots.

"And it's back to me," Titan said with a smirk as he drew another card. "Terrorking Archfiend, rise in Attack Mode." He placed the card on his disk and another Archfiend appeared on the field next to the queen, with a red crown on his head (A: 2000-3000/D: 1500). "And since Infernalqueen is on the field, Terrorking's Attack Points are increased by 1000."

"3000?!" Jaden exclaimed.

"Whoa," Xander said.

"And it's about to get worse for you. Terrorking, attack his Avian, Locus Storm Barrage," Titan ordered and Terrorking's chest opened up before a swarm of locusts appeared and flew toward Avian.

"Not so fast, I have a Trap; Mirror Gate," Jaden said, revealing the Trap Card on his field and a shimmering shield appeared around Avian.

Titan laughed. "Do you honestly think a Trap is going to stop me? Look around you and tell me who's trapped," he said.

Jaden frowned, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"I mean your Trap won't work. It simply activates my Terrorking's Special Ability, one that determines our monsters' face by chance," Titan said as six numbered balls appeared in mid-air. "When Terrorking is targeted by an effect, it gives my Terrorking a gambling chance. A number between one and six is chosen randomly. If it lands on a two or a five, then your Trap card is destroyed and my monster remains on my field. So let's spin the wheel of fate and see what happens, shall we?"

A burst of fire appeared around the first ball before it started to make its way around the other balls quickly.

"It's okay, the odds are way in Jaden's favor," Chumley said.

"You flunked math, Chumley," Syrus reminded him.

"Nuh uh, I got a 54," he shot back.

"Uh, that is flunking," Nick said.

The flame slowed down until it came to a stop on the number two.

Titan grinned again. "It seems that chance has favored the Terrorking Archfiend. Mirror Gate is shattered," he said as the shield shattered. "Now, Locust Storm Barrage, finish him!"

Avian howled in pain as the locusts covered his body and tore him apart before he exploded in a puff of smoke.

**Titan/Steele: 8000**

**Jaden/Xander: 6000**

"That's not good but at least that activates my other Trap," Jaden said as his other Trap was revealed. "Hero Signal." A beam of green light shot from the Trap to touch the wall, revealing a large black H in the middle of it.

"When my monster is destroyed in battle, this Trap Card allows me to summon a monster from my deck or my hand, as long as it has Elemental Hero in its name and I choose Elemental Hero Clayman in Defense Mode," Jaden said as the giant, brown stone like monster appeared, kneeling on the field (A: 800/D: 2000).

"Way to duel!" Syrus praised.

"Clayman will keep their Life Points safe," Sean said.

"I don't think so," Titan said to which Jaden raised an eyebrow.

"Huh?"

Titan raised a golden upside down pyramid that Xander immediately recognized as the Millennium Puzzle. "At least they won't be safe from this," he said and a fierce golden light shined from the item.

"Now the Shadow Game has truly begun," Titan said before laughing coolly. "Don't your Life Points seem so utterly insignificant when it's your very life on the line?"

The light faded, though Jaden didn't know what happened until his friends and brother did.

"Jaden!"

"No!"

"What the heck just happened?" That last one came from Xander and Jaden, frowning, looked down only to freeze when he spotted fog swirling around him and his arm and chest were partly erased.

"Hey, my arm!"

"It's the way of the Shadows, fool," Titan explained. "Transcending the game and attacking your body."

Jaden tried to reposition himself but found he couldn't move. Concerned, Xander also tried to move but found he couldn't either. "Hey, why can't I move?" the older twin demanded, looking at Titan.

"Why can't I move, either?" Jaden demanded.

Titan looked amused and serious at the same time while Steele didn't stop the grin from crossing his face. "As the Shadow Fog rolls past, it will ensnare you all into its grip, taking you completely," Titan said.

Chumley, Syrus, Nick and Sean began coughing as their hands went to their throats and the fog came around them.

"It's getting hard to breathe in here," Chumley wheezed.

Steele grinned. "You all are at the mercy of the night now," he said.

"Treasure the numbness you feel inside now, for it will not last as you all make your way into the chasm and void where every waking moment is filled with misery and…"

"Oh c'mon," Jaden interrupted with a scoff. "Give me a break. It can't be that bad. Back at our dorm, we got blackout curtains so we can sleep in later, so I'm not afraid of the dark."

"Now," Xander said and smirked when his brother glared at him.

"I'm sure he didn't need to know that, Xan," Jaden said irritably.

Titan held up his golden pyramid. "But your blackout curtains don't' wield the same kind of mystic power as my Millennium Item does," he said as his item began to glow again. "It's your move."

Jaden looked at his hand, which was mostly erased like his arm. _Wow, Millennium Items, Shadow Fog, man, who could ask for a better challenge? _He thought, smiling slightly.

Titan frowned at Jaden. _What's he smiling about? He should be begging for mercy right now,_ he thought.

Steele tilted his head to the side before looking at Xander who didn't seem fazed either and he frowned. _These two are different from our usual opponents,_ he thought.

"Okay, Jaden, get your game on," Jaden told himself as he drew a card. "I play Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two more cards." He drew two more before smiling and adding, "And I'll use Polymerization to fuse the Elemental Hero Sparkman in my hand with the Clayman I have on the field."

He paused as Sparkman—the blue-and-gold warrior leapt into the air—before he was joined together with Clayman. They came together before creating the huge purple and yellow armored monster (A: 2400/D: 1500).

"Say hello to Elemental Hero Thunder Giant. Now, I'll use his Special Ability and destroy one monster on your side of the field whose original Attack Points were lower than his. Thunder Giant, let loose on Terrorking Archfiend with Static Blast," Jaden ordered, pointing to the king. A ball of electricity appeared in Thunder Giant's palm and he let out a roar before unleashing it at Terrorking.

Titan chuckled. "I activate Terrorking's Special Ability again. Spin Roulette," he declared and the fireball began to move again.

"Aw man, it can't land on a two or a five again," Syrus protested.

"That's unlikely, anyway," Sean said.

"Apparently not impossible, though," Nick said, gesturing to where the fireball came to a stop on the number five.

Titan smirked. "I win again," he said. "Looks like fate isn't even on your side even half of the time. Now you will pay the price." He laughed and the ball of electricity was redirected back at Thunder Giant, destroying him.

"Talk about some really rotten luck," Jaden groaned. "This stinks."

"Jaden, be careful," Syrus called.

Chumley gulped. _This is so not licious. No matter what Jaden does, that Shadow Duelist's Archfiend deck can use the Spin Roulette to save himself, and this choking dark fog isn't helping much, either. I mean, Jaden and Xander first came here to save Alexis and Raisa but it looks like they might not be able to save themselves._

Xander frowned. _I have to figure out a way to neutralize Titan's Archfiends somehow and, preferably, before Steele brings out the powerhouse of his deck because if that comes out then we might not be able to withstand it,_ he thought.

Titan and Steele laughed. "All your monsters are destroyed," Titan said. "And you and your brother are next boy. Prepare to join the Shadow Realm."

"Not just yet. We're still in this," Jaden said.

"Not for long. My turn," Steele said, drawing a card. "And I summon Steelswarm Caller to my field in Attack Mode." A moment later, a tall, skinner black bug-like creature with red wings appeared (A: 1700/D: 0).

"Now, Steelswarm Caller, attack his Weapons Master, Swarm Strike," Steele ordered.

"You activated my monster's Special Ability," said Xander. "When Weapons Master is attacked, he's allowed to negate the attack so long as it's from a non-machine type monster and only once per turn."

The monster slammed into the energy shield surrounding Weapons Master before being sent back to Steele's side of the field; the shield around Weapons Master vanished.

Steele growled. "Fine, I place one card face down and that's it," he said, slipping the card into a Spell/Trap card slot.

"My draw," Xander said, drawing a card. "And I summon Star Force Ice Phoenix to my field in Attack Mode." The beautiful blue-white bird appeared on the field with her wings spread as a trill escaped her beak (A: 1700/D: 1500).

'_What the heck is that?_' Ice Phoenix trilled, pointing her beak towards the bug-like fiends.

"Then I activate the Quick-Play spell Rush Recklessly to increase Weapons Master's Attack Points by 700," Xander added, not answering Ice Phoenix's question and Weapons Master powered up (A: 1600-2300/D: 1500).

"Now, Weapons Master, attack his Steelswarm Caller with Energy Discharge," Xander ordered and Weapons Master nodded before pointing his rifle at the skinny bug and firing; a bolt of energy shot across the air to slam into the bug-like fiend, destroying it.

**Titan/Steele: 7400**

**Jaden/Xander: 6000**

"And now, Ice Phoenix, attack Steelswarm Cell with Icicle Storm," Xander added.

_'Gladly_,' Ice Phoenix trilled before she flew into the air and, flapping her wings and sent a shower of icicles into the cell, destroying it.

"And I'll end my turn with that," Xander said and Weapons Master's Attack Points went back to normal, though the energy shield returned.

"Yes, they still have a chance," Syrus said. "And look, Steele is starting to fade too."

Sure enough, part of Steele's arm had disappeared as well.

Titan scowled as he drew a card. "I think I'm going to get rid of that monster right now," he said. "Terrorking Archfiend, attack that Weapons Master, Locust Storm Barrage."

Terrorking's chest opened up again and the swarm of locusts shot forward.

"I activate Weapons Master's Special Ability to negate your attack," Xander said.

"And let's see if that will happen since that ability does target my monster. Will it land on a two and five like it did with your brother?" Titan asked before the fireball began to circle again only, this time, it landed on a three. Titan's face fell and Xander smiled as the attack was negated.

"Fine then," Titan said coolly. "Now, Infernalqueen attack his Weapons Master now."

Xander shielded his face with his duel disk as the Infernalqueen's attack destroyed his Weapons Master.

**Titan/Steele: 7400**

**Jaden/Xander: 5700**

Titan grinned at the loss of points as a portion of Xander's arm vanished. "It's only a matter of time before the shadows claim you now," he said coolly. "I end my turn."

"And mine starts," Jaden said, drawing a card. "And I summon Elemental Hero Burstinatrix to my field in Defense Mode." The fiery gray-skinned heroine in the red bodysuit appeared on the field before kneeling down (A: 1200/800). "And I'll end my turn."

"And it's my turn now," Steele said, drawing a card before smiling. "I activate Infestation Ripples. I'm going to give up 500 of our Life Points, Titan, in order to bring back Steelswarm Cell."

"You better know what you're doing, Steele," Titan said.

**Titan/Steele: 6900**

**Jaden/Xander: 5700**

"Oh I do," Steele said, ignoring that more of his body was fading as his cell returned to the field (A: 0/D: 0). "And then I Normal Summon Steelswarm Genome to my field in Defense Mode. Not that he'll be here for long." He paused as the gray and brown round bug-like fiend appeared on the field (A: 1000/0).

"And then I activate my Trap Card, Ultimate Offering. By paying 500 Life Points, I can sacrifice my Steelswarm Genome, which counts as two tributes when it's used to summon a Steelswarm monster, and my Steelswarm Cell in order to summon my Steelswarm Hercules."

**Titan/Steele: 6400**

**Jaden/Xander: 5700**

"Steelswarm Hercules?" Jaden repeated.

"Yes," Steele said smirking, though another part of his body had faded because of the loss of points, as his two monsters vanished to be replaced by a gigantic fiend in black and gold armor with red eyes (A: 3200/D: 0).

"3200?!" Jaden and Xander exclaimed.

"Oh man, this isn't good," Syrus cried.

"No it isn't," Steele said._ I would use Hercules's Special Ability but that would mean destroying Titan's monsters too and I don't think he'd be too happy about that,_ he thought before adding, "Now, Hercules, attack Ice Phoenix with Swarm Strike." Steelswarm Hercules shot forward before slamming his fist into Ice Phoenix, destroying her.

**Titan/Steele: 6400**

**Jaden/Xander: 4200**

"When you destroyed Ice Phoenix, you activated her effect and now Jaden and I gain Life Points equal to her Defense Points," Xander said as Ice Phoenix reappeared and flew around the twins.

**Titan/Steele: 6400**

**Jaden/Xander: 5700**

"Cool, they got back the Life Points they lost because of that attack," Nick commented.

"Won't make a difference," Steele said. "I end my turn."

"My turn," Xander said, drawing a card. "And I activate Card of Sanctity so that all of us draw until we have six cards."

Everyone drew.

"And then I activate my Trap, Call of the Haunted, to bring back Weapons Master," he added before the robotic humanoid reappeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1500).

_'Argh_, _get this idiot back for that_,' Weapons Master said.

"Oh I will. Now, I Normal Summon Star Force Cloud Snake to my field in Defense Mode," Xander added, placing the card on his field and the white snake with the smooth silver carapace appeared, coiled on the field (A: 400/D: 200).

"Why summon such a weak monster?" Titan wondered.

Xander simply shrugged. "I place a card face down and end my turn," he said.

"Then I will begin mine," Titan said, drawing a card before pointing. "Terrorking, destroy Weapons Master again."

"I activate Weapons Master's Special Ability," Xander said immediately.

"Then let's see if you will be lucky as you were last time," Titan said as the fireball began moving.

"Don't land on two or five, don't land on two or five," Syrus chanted and, apparently, it worked because the fireball landed on the number one.

Titan scowled furiously as Terrorking's attack was stopped.

"I guess your luck's run out, Titan," Jaden said before glancing at Xander and adding, "Shut up, Xan."

"I didn't say anything," Xander protested.

"That won't stop Infernalqueen's attack," he said angrily. "Go, Infernalqueen, attack."

"This will. It's my Trap Card Negate Attack," Xander said, revealing the Trap Card.

"Infernalqueen has the same ability as Terrorking so let's see what happens," Titan said as the numbers appeared again and the fireball began to move around them, only to land on the number three and Infernalqueen's attack was stopped.

"And you say there's no such thing as luck," Jaden said with a smirk as Titan scowled.

"I place one card face down and end my turn," he said.

"My move," Jaden said, drawing a card. "And I activate Monster Reborn to bring back Elemental Hero Avian in Defense Mode."

A moment later, his feathered and winged green hero reappeared on the field (A: 1000/D: 1000).

"So? He's not strong enough to take on any of my monsters," Titan said.

"Or mine," Steele said.

Jaden shrugged. "I end my turn with that," he said.

"At least he has some defense," Sean said.

"I hope it's enough," Nick said.

"My turn," Steele said, drawing. "Since I already know you're going to negate Hercules's attack on your Weapons Master, I'm targeting your Cloud Snake but first, I'm playing Stop Defense to bring your monster out of Defense Mode."

"Oh man, if this attack hits, they're going to be almost out of Life Points," Syrus cried as Cloud Snake was forced to move into Attack Mode.

"Now, Steelswarm Hercules, attack Cloud Snake with Swarm Strike," Steele ordered and Hercules attacked, throwing a punch that shattered Cloud Snake and the resulting explosion nearly sent Xander to the ground and caused more parts of his body to fade away.

**Titan/Steele: 6400**

**Jaden/Xander: 2900**

"Xan, are you okay?!" Jaden called.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Xander said, pushing himself to his feet. "But thank you for that, Steele."

"What?" Steele repeated.

"What?!" Everyone else exclaimed but Jaden suddenly grinned.

"Cloud Snake's Special Ability?" he asked.

Xander grinned as well. "Cloud Snake's Special Ability. You see, Steele, when Cloud Snake's destroyed by battle, I can remove one Continuous or Field Spell on the field from play and I choose Pandemonium," he declared.

"No!" Titan shouted as Pandemonium faded away. As Pandemonium faded away, the coffins carrying Alexis and Raisa reappeared.

Xander grinned. "Now you have to pay Life Points to keep your Archfiends in play, Titan," he said.

Titan growled furiously.

Steele slapped a card on his disk, looking furious. "I place this facedown and end my turn," he hissed.

"My turn then," Xander said, drawing a card. "First, I'm activating Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your face down card, Steele." After he put the card on his disk, the small tornado appeared and destroyed the face-down on Steele's field.

"And then I summon Star Force Dark Consular to my field in Defense Mode, not that she'll be staying here for long, though."

The female warrior in the formfitting black bodysuit appeared, kneeling on the field (A: 1300/D: 1200).

"Are you going to summon what I think you're going to summon?" Jaden asked.

"Uh huh. Frankly, it's the only one capable of going against Steelswarm Hercules," Xander said before he held up another card. "I play Double Summon so that I can sacrifice Star Force Dark Consular and Star Force Weapons Master to summon my Star Force Shadow Dragon!"

The Weapons Master and the Consular looked at each other, nodded and vanished to be replaced by the gigantic black dragon with glistening silver eyes who let out a roar as he appeared on the field (A: 3500/D: 3000).

"Heck yeah, Xander's best monster!" Syrus shouted.

"That is an awesome monster," Sean commented.

"Wait until you see its Special Ability," Xander said.

"Yeah, it's what he used to beat me during our tests a few days ago," Nick said.

"Shadow Dragon's Special Ability goes like this," the older Yuki twin said, looking at the two Shadow Duelists. "For every Star Force monster in my graveyard—currently there are four—Shadow Dragon gains 500 Attack Points."

"What?!" Steele gasped as Shadow Dragon roared while his power increased (A: 3500-5500/D: 3000).

"Go, Shadow Dragon, attack Steelswarm Hercules with Dark Star Blast," Xander ordered and his dragon roared, unleashing a stream of black and silver energy that struck Hercules and obliterated him.

**Titan/Steele: 4100**

**Jaden/Xander: 2900**

"And I'll end my turn with that," Xander said as more of Steele disappeared.

Titan growled furiously, yanking a card out of his disk. "You still won't win this duel," he hissed. "Because I am going to do this but first, I have to pay 1300 to keep Infernalqueen and Terrorking on the field."

**Titan/Steele: 2800**

**Jaden/Xander: 2900**

"Next, I switch Infernalqueen to Defense Mode," Titan added and Infernalqueen knelt down. "Then I sacrifice my Terrorking Archfiend in order to summon my Skull Archfiend of Lightning!"

Terrorking vanished to be replaced by a grimmer version of the Summoned Skull with lightning coiling around him (A: 2500/D: 1200).

"And due to my Infernalqueen's effect, he gains 1000 Attack Points," Titan added as Skull Archfiend of Lightning suddenly grew stronger (A: 2500-3500/D: 1200).

"Next, I play my own Stop Defense to bring your Avian out of Defense Mode," Titan added, playing the card and Avian stood up. "Now, Skull Archfiend of Lightning, attack Avian with Blast Stream of Fury!"

A strike of lightning shot away from the Skull Archfiend's hand to strike at Avian, causing him to cry out in pain and shatter.

**Titan/Steele: 2800**

**Jaden/Xander: 400**

"Jaden!" Xander shouted at Jaden who had been sent to the ground following Avian's destruction. "Jay, are you okay?"

"Y…Yeah," Jaden said, forcing himself to his feet. _I've got to hold on for Alexis and Raisa_, he thought.

Titan lifted up his Millennium Item as it began to glow. "Look into my Millennium Item, boy, and feel yourself drifting further into the Shadows. That's it, boy. You and your brother are almost out of Life Points and soon you two will be nothing more than a soulless, hollow shell. Feel yourself drifting boy, feel yourself drifting…"

Jaden fell to one knee, staring at the Millennium Item in the Shadow Duelist's hand, Titan's voice was getting fainter and Jaden's vision was becoming blurry.

"Jaden! What the heck are you doing to him?" Xander demanded, glaring at Titan.

"The same thing that I'm going to do with you, boy," Steele said, holding up his Millennium Necklace. "Look into my Millennium Item. You are almost out of Life Point. It will not be long before you become a soulless empty shell."

Xander's eyes locked on to the Millennium Item and he found himself unable to tear his gaze away from it. His gaze started to become blurry and he could barely hear what Steele was saying as he fell to one knee.

_What is going on with me?_ Xander thought, surprised, as he was surrounded by darkness; sadly, when he saw he couldn't see anything around him, he added silently, _Raisa, I'm sorry._

**. . .**

**A/n what do you think?**

**Blaze: yay! My first cliffhanger of the story, though this story still ended up being over 10,000 words**

**Darth: ah if you had kept the entire chapter (and included everything you wanted to include) then it would have been over 15,000**

**Blaze: true. Also, I'm going to be posting a oneshot soon entitled **_**Prelude to the Storm**_** so I hope you check it out**

**Darth: cool**

**Blaze: so I hope you enjoyed this extremely long chapter and the next chapter will be posted as soon as I finish typing it (it will cover the rest of this duel as well as the aftermath and introduction to the next episode) Reviews, as always, are much appreciated.**


	8. Chapter Seven

**Thank you to **_**decode9**_** and **_**Nightshade07**_** for reviewing the last chapter. In response to **_**decode9**_**'s review, the next episode is the first Jaden/Zane duel and this episode is like a prelude to that episode.**

**Also, I'm planning on taking a little hiatus from FanFiction to focus a bit on my original stories for a bit.**

**I have also started working on another GX fanfic entitled (for the moment as it is subject to change) **_**Dark Awakening**_** that is going to be a complete rewrite of Season 2 and, possibly, Season 3 but that story _will not _replace this story. This story _will_ be continued and that's primarily because I already have a rough outline of the rest of season 1 and I definitely have the main ideas for season 2 down.**

**Again, thank you to **_**EndlessNight025**_** for beta-reading this story. I will continue this story, even if it takes time, so your OC will come into this story but it depends on how long it takes me to get to the Shadow Rider arc.**

**I've also decided that I **_**will**_** accept another OC so **_**JxA fan 2000**_**, since you were the most recent one to ask (who didn't already submit an OC) expect a PM with the needed information.**

**Here is chapter seven and I hope that you like it, even though it's just the end of the last duel and a filler chapter.**

**Chapter Seven**

Surrounded by darkness, Jaden looked up as a _coo_ sounded and a small orb of light danced around him. He frowned. "Hey, is that you, Winged Kuriboh?" he called out softly.

The orb continued to dance around him, as if trying to tell him something and Jaden weakly waved at it. "Whoa, slow down, Kuriboh. That light of yours is gonna hypnotize me more than help me! I…" He trailed off and looked straight ahead.

Kuriboh's ball of light was directly in front of the Shadow Duelists but when Jaden looked hard at his opponents, he noticed that the shadows surrounding Kuriboh, Titan and Steele had been pushed back. And he could now see the strange room they had returned to after Cloud Snake's Special Ability destroyed Pandemonium.

_That's it,_ Jaden thought, opening his eyes. _We're not dueling in the shadows. He's playing with my mind._

**. . .**

'_Xander, come on. Snap out of it!_' Sand Hound barked, appearing in front of Xander and he blinked, confused.

"Sand Hound?" he mumbled.

_'It's_ _all fake, Xan. He's playing with your mind. He's hypnotizing you. Look_,' Sand Hound barked before pointing with his snout and Xander followed his gaze to find that the shadows around them were being pushed back around Titan and Steele.

In a flash he understood.

**. . .**

"I've got this Shadow Game scam figured out," the Yuki twins exclaimed at the same time as they got to their feet before they looked at each other, smiled a bit and looked back at Titan and Steele.

"Shadow Game scam?" Chumley echoed.

"What do they mean?" Syrus asked.

"Our souls aren't on the serving plate anymore," Jaden said before he drew his card now that it was his turn. "Now come on, let's keep going."

"Yeah, take him out, Jay," Xander called. "And I'll be back up, just in case."

_What's going on?_ Titan thought.

_Why aren't they trembling anymore?_ Steele thought.

"And I play the Spell, Miracle Fusion," Jaden declared, holding out the card in his hand. "This card lets me fuse monsters that are either on my side of the field or in my Graveyard by banishing them from play. So I banish Elemental Hero Avian and Elemental Hero Sparkman in my Graveyard in order to summon my Elemental Hero Great Tornado!"

"He has that monster, too? Cool," Sean said.

"Nice, Jay," Xander said, smiling as Jaden removed the two cards from his graveyard slot and his new monster reappeared on the field; he was an armored man with and green and black bodysuit with white and yellow gauntlets and a torn black cape covering his right arm (A: 2800/D: 2200).

"And, because of Great Tornado's Special Ability, all of your monsters Attack Points are cut in half," Jaden added to which Titan gasped as both his Infernalqueen and Skull Archfiend were weakened (Inf A: 1900-950 Skull A: 3500-1750).

"Now, Great Tornado, attack Titan's Skull Archfiend of Lightning with Cyclone Strike," Jaden ordered and Great Tornado unleashed a cyclone of wind that nailed Skull Archfiend of Lightning in the chest and destroyed him.

**Titan/Steele: 1750**

**Jaden/Xander: 400**

"Yes!" Syrus shouted happily.

"So what?" Titan growled.

"You haven't destroyed our Millennium Items," Steele added.

"Be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it," Jaden said as he tossed Avian, which he still had in his hand, into the eye of the Millennium Puzzle at the exact same time as Xander removed a card from his side deck and tossed it at the Millennium Necklace, striking it right in its eye as well.

"What did you do?" Titan and Steele shouted as Jaden and Xander's bodies reverted to normal, as did the Shadow Duelists'.

"All right, Jaden and Xander got their bodies back," Syrus shouted.

"We never lost 'em, Sy," Xander said. "This whole Shadow Game was just a big fake. Nothing but a bunch of smoke and mirrors used to make us think we were losing our souls."

"I mean this guy is a complete sham," Jaden said.

"He's probably nothing more than an out of work carny."

"And his partner is no better."

"We're not out of work," Titan and Steele protested. "We can both get our jobs back at the fair anytime we want."

"I'm sure you could…" Jaden began.

"…and I'm sure that the papier-mâché Millennium Items…" Xander continued.

"…goes over real well…"

"…with the kiddies."

Titan and Steele exchanged nervous glances. "No, shut up, it's real, we're real," they shouted together.

"You're nothing but a sideshow phony," the twins declared at the same time.

"Fool! You forget, we still have the girls."

"Alexis and Raisa?" Syrus asked.

"That's right, they're still in danger," Chumley said.

Titan chuckled. "Yes, you remember the girls? They're locked away in a Shadow Tomb, their souls festering in the dark recesses of the netherworld. That proves that this Millennium Pendant and Steele's Millennium Amulet are real," he cried triumphantly as he held up his cracked items.

_Oh dang it! He forgot what they were called. The ruse is up. Forget the money. I'm out_, Steele thought before he, while everyone's attention was focused on Titan, bolted out of the room, down the hallway and out of the abandoned dorm.

"What do you have to say to that?" Titan asked, not noticing that Steele had already fled.

"That you're a big dunce," Jaden and Xander said at the same time.

"The walls of this dorm are covered in sketches of the seven Millennium Items. The one you're holding? It's called the Millennium Puzzle, not the Millennium Pendant," Jaden said.

"And the one you're holding, Steele, is called the Millennium Necklace, not the Millennium Amulet," Xander added before he frowned because Steele was nowhere to be seen.

Titan swallowed. _They figured it out. Forget the money. Time to get out,_ he thought before he looked to find that Steele was gone.

Jaden narrowed his eyes. "You don't have Alexis' or Raisa's souls at all. So give them back and all the other kids you and your buddy snatched," he ordered.

"Steele's gone, Jay," Xander said. "He must've fled sometime while we were talking."

"Other kids?" Titan repeated, before Jaden could reply. "I don't know what you're talking about. And because of that carny comment, you can find your friends by yourself." He threw something at their feet and there was a bright flash in the room before the area was filled with smoke.

"No way," Jaden shouted, bolting head on through the thick smoke. "You're not getting away that easy. Get back here!"

"Jaden, wait up," Xander shouted, running after his brother into the thick smoke as well.

When they entered the smoke though, that's when it happened. A dozen or so beams of light suddenly appeared from all directions, merging at the center of the room right between the three of them. Piercing through the smoke the smoke bomb had created, it formed a glowing eye on the floor.

"Wow," Jaden breathed, looking around him. "How'd you do that cool trick?"

Titan backed away, eyes wide. "I didn't," he said.

The wind began to pick up and the smoke began to swirl into a cyclone and Jaden and Xander were hard-pressed to not be tossed off their feet by the strength of the gusts beating at them from all sides.

"What the…?" the twins began as the smoke covered the three of them.

**. . .**

Outside, Titan, Jaden and Xander vanished into a sphere of darkness and crackling energy.

"Jaden! Xander!" Syrus called, hoping his voice could be heard in the sphere.

"What the heck?" Sean said, eyeing the sphere warily.

"Ah man, Jaden and Xander are trapped inside," Syrus exclaimed. "What do we do?"

"I don't think there's anything we can do," Nick said.

**. . .**

Meanwhile, inside the dorm, the three duelists were surrounded by darkness and Titan was freaking out. Xander was shivering, for this place reminded him too much of some of his nightmares and Jaden was scowling.

"What is this place? Where am I?" Titan demanded fearfully.

"Enough with the tricks already! Where are Alexis and Raisa?" Jaden demanded.

"Trick!" Titan glanced toward the twins. "I never do anything like this. I'm not that good."

At that moment, a shriek sounded and a large mass of black blobs were making their way toward the three duelists. Jaden stared. _What in the world? This guy's got everything up his sleeve,_ he thought.

_I don't like the looks of this,_ Xander thought.

Titan was unfortunate as the blobs suddenly started assaulting him. Screaming, Titan stared pleadingly at the twins. "Jaden, Xander, help me! Get these things off…" His plead was cut off when a blob covered his mouth.

Xander knew he couldn't just do anything but still started forward only to realize he was being surrounded. "Jaden!" he called, noticing his brother was in a similar predicament.

A bark sounded and Xander frowned before pulling out the card from his deck, allowing Sand Hound to appear before, growling, swiping a paw at one of the blobs and the blobs immediately began backing of.

With Jaden, a _coo_ sounded and he looked at his deck to see a small ball of brown fur attempting to escape from his deck. Eventually, to Jaden's amazement, Winged Kuriboh managed to get out.

He rubbed his eyes. "Okay, I think I'm hallucinating. First I hear you, now I'm seeing you? What in the world is going on here? Xan, can you…?" Jaden trailed off when he spotted the sand-colored form of Xander's Star Force Sand Hound crouched in front of the older twin, swiping at any blob that got too close.

"Wait, I can see Sand Hound too," he exclaimed. "Can you…?"

"Yes, I can see Winged Kuriboh, I'll explain later. Right now, we need to figure out a way…" Xander began.

"Jaden and Xander Yuki…"

The twins looked up at the sound of their names to see that Titan was no longer covered by the blobs. However, his eyes were crimson now and his voice was harsher, colder and sounded eerily similar to the voice in Xander's nightmares.

"The Shadows pang for a soul, or two, and only one or two will survive," Titan declared.

Jaden looked incredulous. "Oh c'mon! Let this go already. Now you got red contacts? Man, you really went overboard preparing for this, didn't you?" he said.

Xander, on the other hand, was freaked out, mostly because of how this resembled, somewhat, one of his nightmares.

"Xan, you okay?" Jaden asked, concerned.

"Y…Yeah," Xander said, taking a deep breath and telling himself that just because Titan sounded like the voice from his nightmares didn't mean anything.

Titan raised his duel disk and the blobs formed a circle around them. Sand Hound crouched at Xander's side, glaring at the blobs while Winged Kuriboh floated on Jaden's other side. "This duel will continue here in the Shadow Realm, Jaden, Xander, and you two will lose your souls," he rasped; his Infernalqueen reappeared on the field while Jaden's Great Tornado and Xander's Shadow Dragon and facedown card also reappeared.

**Titan: 1750**

**Jaden/Xander: 400**

Jaden sighed. "Still using the Shadow Realm stuff, huh? Well, at least we can finish the match," he said, slipping a card into a Spell/Trap card slot. "I place this face down and end my turn."

"I guess, since Steele bailed, it's my turn," Xander said, drawing a card. "Now, Shadow Dragon, attack his Infernalqueen with Dark Star Blast," he ordered before his dragon roared and unleashed a stream of black and silver energy at Infernalqueen, destroying her.

"I'll end my turn by placing this facedown," Xander added, slipping the card into a Spell/Trap card slot. _May as well set some more defense, just in case_, he thought.

"And it is my turn," Titan rasped, drawing a card. "And I play Monster Reborn to return Infernalqueen Archfiend to my field." Infernalqueen reappeared on the field (A: 900-1900/D: 1500). Then I summon Desrook Archfiend to my field in Defense Mode."

A skeletal skull with four arms jutting out of it and glowing red eyes appeared on the field (A: 1100-2100/D: 1800).

"But I am not done. Now, I play Double Summon to sacrifice Desrook Archfiend and Infernalqueen Archfiend to summon my Archfiend Empress." Both of his monsters vanished to be replaced by a female skeletal creature with red horns on her head and a spear in one hand (A: 2900/D: 2100).

Jaden whistled. "Impressive monster," he said.

"And she shall assure that you two become one with the Shadows. Unlike other Archfiends, I do not need to pay Life Points to keep her on the field," Titan declared. "Go, Archfiend Empress, attack Great Tornado."

"I activate my Trap Card," Jaden said, immediately revealing the Trap Card on his field. "Hero Barrier! As long as I control an Elemental Hero, I can negate your monster's attack."

Titan scowled furiously. "Very well, I place two cards face down and end my turn now," he said.

"My move," Jaden said, drawing a card before looking disappointed by what he drew. "And I'll pass. Xan, looks like you're ending this duel."

Xander nodded, drawing a card. "Shadow Dragon, attack his Empress with Dark Star Blast," he ordered and Shadow Dragon roared before unleashing a black and silver beam at Empress, hitting it and destroying it.

"We won," Jaden said with a grin only for the grin to fade to find that Titan was still standing.

**Titan: 150**

**Jaden/Xander: 400**

"What…?"

"I activated my Emergency Provisions and got rid of my facedown Trap to give myself 1000 Life Points," Titan explained. "And since you destroyed my Empress, I am allowed to Special Summon a Level six or higher DARK Fiend-type monster from my Graveyard and I choose Skull Archfiend of Lightning!"

The warped grimmer version of the Summoned Skull with coils of lightning crackling around it reappeared on the field in Attack Mode (A: 2500/D: 1200).

"Darn," Xander muttered. "I end my turn."

"And I shall now begin your doom," Titan declared, drawing a card. "And I activate the Spell, Raigeki to destroy all monsters on your fields."

Jaden and Xander gasped as bolts of lightning struck down on the field, obliterating Shadow Dragon and Great Tornado, leaving their fields empty, except for Xander's facedown cards.

"And now that you're defenseless, that means this duel is over and your souls belong to the Shadows now. Go, Skull Archfiend, attack Jaden directly with Blast Stream of Fury."

"Uh, Xan…" Jaden looked scared.

"Relax, Jay, I've got this," Xander said. "Good thing it's a tag duel and my field works for you too, which means I can do this. I activate my Trap, Starlight Barrier!" _Now, I just hope we're still lucky,_ he thought as the star-speckled shield appeared around them.

"And what does this do?" Titan asked.

"It stops your attack, cuts your monsters' Attack Points in half and redirects the attack back at you," Xander said.

"Then let's see if your luck is still holding," Titan declared. "If it lands on a one, three or six then your card is destroyed and you lose."

The six numbered balls reappeared and the fire began to circle them.

Xander swallowed, knowing full well that their chances of not getting a one, three or six were only fifty percent. Nevertheless, their luck held because the fireball landed on a four.

Both Xander and Jaden let out the breaths they had been holding while Titan shrieked in fury as the lightning attack slammed into the shield and flew back, bypassing Skull Archfiend and striking Titan, sending him to the ground and taking out the rest of his Life Points.

**Titan: 0**

**Jaden/Xander: 400 WINNER**

"No!" Titan shouted as he was, again, attacked by the dark blobs of slime. He began to sink into the floor and struggled to get free.

"Help me!" he pleaded. "Get them off me! Tell my kids…I love them."

Xander and Jaden could only watch.

_Wow, sweet special effects,_ Jaden thought as Titan vanished.

_'Over_ _here_,' Sand Hound barked, causing Jaden to jump in surprise but Xander was already making his way to where Sand Hound and Winged Kuriboh were cutting a way out of the Shadow Realm.

"Let's get outta here, Jay," Xander said, glancing over at his brother who nodded and the two of them hurried to the hole before leaping through it.

**. . .**

"Look!" Nick shouted, pointing at the sphere just as Xander and Jaden dove out of a cut in it; Xander landed with a thud and Jaden landed on top of him.

"Jaden!" Syrus cheered.

"Are you two all right?" Sean asked.

"I would be if _someone would get off me_!" Xander shouted.

"Sorry bro," Jaden said, getting off his brother before helping him to his feet.

"What happened?" Nick asked.

However, before anyone could say anything else, the sphere started to implode, causing a powerful gust of wind that nearly sent the caskets containing the girls flying. Jaden and Xander immediately grabbed hold of Alexis's and Raisa's caskets respectively and struggled to hold it down as the sphere exploded.

Jaden stood up and clapped. "Awesome! I wonder what he does for an encore. Talk about a magic trick. There were all these little monsters and vortexes and…" he began.

"Magic trick?" Syrus echoed, interrupting Jaden. "You don't think that was the real Shadow Realm?"

"Nah, it's all mirrors and fog machines, just like I said," Jaden said.

_I'm not so sure_, Xander thought.

_'It_ _was real_,' Sand Hound barked. _'But_ _maybe we should just let Jaden believe it wasn't._'

Xander glanced at the sand-colored hound before looking at his brother who was scratching his head and looking confused.

"Although," the younger twin said, "I'd give my entire deck to find out how he did it. I've never seen anything like it."

_Yeah, I think it'll be best if he doesn't know it was real. I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around that fact as it is,_ Xander thought. "Let's get Alexis and Raisa out of here," he said out loud.

. . .

Soon after the group had left the Abandoned Dorm, Crowler was walking through it heading toward the chamber. "Little Jaden and Xander must be paralyzed with fear by now. Oh Titan, where are you, my friend? I'd like to hear every detail, every chat…" Crowler trailed off when he noticed a card on the ground and he bent down to pick it up.

It was Pandemonium

Crowler frowned. "Titan would never leave this behind unless he lost. Jaden Yuki has outwitted me again. But this isn't over yet, not by a long shot," he said angrily before he turned around and stalked out of the house, thinking about what to do know.

**. . .**

Meanwhile, in the forest, Raisa blinked open her eyes. She was lying on a grass-covered ground and, when she looked around, she noticed Alexis and the others were sitting beside her; Xander, who was at her side, glanced down at her and smiled.

"Morning, sleepyhead. Have a good nap?" he asked.

Raisa blinked. "Where am I?" she asked.

"Forest somewhere. I dunno. Jaden was leading so we're probably lost," Xander said with a shrug and ducked to avoid the rock Jaden chugged in his direction.

"We're not lost," the younger twin growled.

"What are you doing here though?" Alexis demanded.

"What kind of thanks is that?" Jaden protested. "We're here 'cause we…"

"…had to fight the bad guys…" Xander continued.

"…win the duel and…"

"…save the damsels in distress."

Sean stood up, stalked over to Xander and Jaden and proceeded to smack them hard upside the head.

"Ow!" The twins protested.

"Oh yeah," Alexis said with a frown. "That strange ma snatched me and Raisa. But how did you know we were in trouble?"

"We heard you scream," Syrus said.

"And we found your cards," Xander said holding out Celestia to Raisa who, blinking grateful, took the card while Jaden handed Cyber Blader to Alexis.

"And look what else we found," Jaden added before holding out the photograph he had obtained; Xander wondered when he picked that up but decided it was probably when they were leaving the dorm.

Alexis's eyes filled with tears. "It's my brother," she exclaimed taking the photograph. "This is the first trace of him I've seen in a long time."

"Well, we brought it to let you know we wanna help you find you your brother, Alexis," Jaden said. "Besides, we can't have you locked in any more tombs."

Alexis seemed about to say something when the group noticed that the sun was starting to rise.

"I think that's our cue to get the heck outta here," Nick said getting to his feet.

"Uh huh. The last thing I want is to get into trouble," Xander said also getting up.

"Oh and Alexis, we were never here," Jaden said before he and the Slifers and Ras, including Raisa, took off while Sean remained behind to look at her.

"Are you ready to go, Alexis?" the short Obelisk asked.

Alexis tore her gaze from the photograph before she nodded and got to her feet. "Yeah, I'm ready. Let's go," she said. _You were here though, Jaden, and you saved me,_ she thought. _And now there's a chance I can find my brother._

**. . .**

"Xan, later or tomorrow, we need to talk about what happened. You said you'd explain," Jaden said looking at Xander as they came to a stop near the Slifer dorm.

"I know, Jay. We'll talk later but I really should get going," Xander said.

Jaden nodded and Xander took off in the direction of the Ra dorm catching up with Nick partway there.

"Do you think we'll get into trouble?" Nick asked.

"I don't think anyone saw us so I don't think so," Xander said as the two of them slipped into the Ra Yellow dorm. "I think I'm going to get some sleep. Good thing it's a free day huh?"

"Uh huh," the Gladiator Beast duelist said before he yawned. "Night, Xander," he added before walking away while Xander made his way to his dorm.

**. . .**

It was still early morning. Alexis, who had been unable to sleep after she returned to the Obelisk Girls' dorm, had decided to take a walk. She found herself near the Lighthouse where the current Kaiser of Duel Academy—Zane Truesdale—was standing eyes fixed on the gently undulating ocean.

"Zane? What are you doing out here?" Alexis asked.

"Nothing. Just felt like being alone," Zane replied neutrally.

Alexis came to a stop at his side. "You know, with your little brother enrolled here, I thought you'd be less alone, not more," she said.

"Well, that's because he doesn't belong here," Zane said bluntly, not noticing the surprised look Alexis gave him.

**. . .**

A truck pulled up to the Slifer dorm and Professor Banner left his room wondering what was going on. "Who's playing war at this time of day?" He wondered aloud before his eyes widened when he spotted the armored men ascending the steps of the dorm rapidly.

"Oh no, it's the Disciplinary Action Squad. They only show up when a student is in serious trouble, and they're heading right for Jaden's room."

**. . .**

Jaden, Syrus and Chumley were fast asleep, taking advantage of the free day to rest up after their trip to the Abandoned Dorm the night before. Unfortunately, a forceful knock on the door jolted Jaden out of his sleep and he yawned before sitting up.

"Open this door right now or we will break it open," a voice shouted from outside.

Jaden yawned again. "Oh really, you and what army?" he asked walking over to the door.

"The Disciplinary Action Squad Army," the voice replied as Jaden opened the door to reveal a large group of people in dark uniforms standing in front of him.

"You must be Jaden Yuki," the woman said looking him over.

"Uh, yeah, so what's going on?" Jaden asked.

Ignoring the question, the woman looked over his shoulder at one of his sleeping roommates before saying, "And I take it that's Syrus Truesdale," she said.

"Yeah, so who are you guys and why are you here?" Jaden asked.

Syrus climbed out of bed, having been woken up by the knocking.

"As I said, we are the Disciplinary Action Squad and you two are under campus arrest," the woman said.

"Arrest? What did we do?" Jaden asked raising an eyebrow.

"That will be made clear to you at the interrogation," the woman replied. "Now get dressed."

**. . .**

Xander leaned against the wall next to the door outside the interrogation room wondering who exactly ratted him and the rest of the group out. He yawned; the memory of what occurred in the Abandoned Dorm had triggered an onslaught of nightmares that left him awake so he wasn't even able to enjoy a restful sleep before the Disciplinary Action Squad had showed up.

"Xander?"

Xander looked over to find his brother and Syrus walking over to join them looking surprised to see him. "Hey Jay, Syrus," he said.

"You're on campus arrest, too?" Syrus asked.

Xander nodded. "I'm guessing someone told on us about the dorm incident."

"No way! No one knew we were there except Chumley, Alexis, Raisa, Nick and Sean and they wouldn't do that," Jaden protested.

Xander shrugged. "I don't know what to say, bro, but we should probably head in there and see what they're going to do about this," he said.

Jaden nodded while Syrus looked worried and the three of them made their way into the room.

**. . .**

**A/n what do you think?**

**Blaze: and that was chapter 7 and the second part of the Shadow Games thing, with another somewhat cliffhanger.**

**Darth: and what will happen now?**

**Blaze: now, I'm stuck. Considering how Crowler wants to get Jaden and Xander expelled (well, mostly Jaden anyway), I doubt he would let Jaden and Xander duel as a tag-team together but he wants Xander out of the school too so I'm stuck on who to put against Xander. Jaden and Syrus are already going against the Paradox Brothers but who should Xander's opponent be?**

**Darth: you leaving that up to the reviewers?**

**Blaze: yup and I'm gonna ask my beta-reader too for any suggestions. Anyway, here are the cards that Xander used during this duel.**

_Star Force Weapons Master_

DARK

4

Machine-effect

ATK: 1600

DEF: 1500

Once per turn, if this card is attacked by a monster your opponent controls (other than Machine-type), you can negate the attack.

_Star Force Ice Phoenix_

LIGHT

4

Winged beast-effect

ATK: 1700

DEF: 1500

When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, increase your Life Points equal to this card's DEF.

_Star Force Shadow Dragon_

DARK

10

Dragon-effect

ATK: 3500

DEF: 3000

This card gains 500 ATK for each monster in your Graveyard with "Star Force" in its name. When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, you take 500 points of damage for each monster in your Graveyard with "Star Force" in its name, other than "Star Force Shadow Dragon".

**Blaze: and I hope that you enjoyed this chapter, which is quite possibly my shortest chapter except for the prologue, and reviews as always are much appreciated.**


	9. Chapter Eight

**Thank you to **_**IfTimeWasStill, decode9**_** and **_**Nightshade07**_** for reviewing the last chapter. You guys are the greatest.**

**And thank you, again, to **_**EndlessNight025**_** for being a great beta-reader.**

**Also, I have decided who Xander will be facing for his expulsion duel but I still have one more chapter before that, I think. **

**I hope that you enjoy this chapter and reviews, as always, are much appreciated.**

**Oh and I should probably include this even though I didn't post it earlier. _I do not own Star Wars (books, movies, games, doesn't matter), I never have and I never will and I am only saying this once so I won't repeat it in later chapters.  
_**

**Chapter Eight**

"Suspension?!" the two Slifers and one Ra all exclaimed at the exact same time.

They were currently in what the D.A.S. woman called the interrogation room, looking at six giant screens; on three of them were Doctor Crowler, Chancellor Sheppard and the woman who had woken them up. Upon entering the interrogation room, they had learned why they were there and what was going to be done about it, though Xander thought the punishment was a bit harsh.

"That's what I suggested," the D.A.S. woman said. "You three have trespassed into the Abandoned Dorm in the woods, which is _strictly forbidden_, and we have received an anonymous letter from a faculty member. You three must be punished to make an example for all the students."

_Why do I get the feeling the person who sent that letter was the one who hired Titan and Steele?_ Xander thought.

"But what kind of an example are we setting? That are we; a bunch of hard-hearted tyrants?' Crowler suddenly said and Xander found himself having a bad feeling. "I say we arrange something more sporting."

"Sporting?" Jaden echoed, looking at the screen Crowler was on. "What do ya mean?"

"Well, Jaden, how about you and Syrus team up for a tag-duel? Win and you go free, lose and you both are expelled," Crowler replied.

"A tag-duel? That sounds sweet," Jaden said, smiling.

Syrus didn't look like he agreed with the taller Slifer. "B…But, Jaden! He said we'll get expelled if we lose," he whispered.

"And you, Xander, I think it would be fair that, since Jaden and Syrus are going to be in a tag-duel that you be in a single duel with 8000 life points instead of the regular 4000," Crowler suggested, clearly trying hard not to grin.

"An 8000 point duel? Sweet!" Xander said excitedly.

"And you will be faced with the same stipulations," Crowler added.

"Fine by me."

Crowler looked at Sheppard. "Well, what do you say, Chancellor? I believe they have accepted the conditions," he said.

Sheppard nodded. "Very well, I'll arrange some opponents immediately," he said.

"Oh, don't worry yourself about that," Crowler said, cutting Sheppard off before he looked back at the Yuki twins and Syrus. "Allow me to find some opponents for these boys."

"You'll have three days to prepare," Sheppard said. "Xander, you'll duel first."

The three nodded and the 'interrogation' ended.

**. . .**

"All right, Xan, can we talk now?" Jaden asked as the three of them left the main building. They were on campus arrest but that didn't mean they were on dorm arrest and the three of them found themselves heading towards the Slifer Dorm. Syrus was looking nervous, probably because he feared he would cause him and Jaden to be expelled. Jaden and Xander, on the other hand, were pretty calm about the whole matter, though Jaden wanted to know exactly what happened back at the Abandoned Dorm.

Xander nodded. "Syrus, go on ahead. We'll catch up," he said.

Syrus glanced at them. "O…Okay," he said and jogged.

"You said you'd explain why you can see Winged Kuriboh and why I could see Sand Hound," Jaden said as the twins followed Syrus, but at a slower pace.

"It's because we can see Duel Spirits, Jaden," Xander said. "It's a rare gift, from what Sand Hound's told me. I started seeing them when Pegasus gave me my cards. Believe me, I was confused and thought I was hallucinating as well but Sand Hound and Cloud Snake convinced me that I wasn't."

_'Took_ _forever!_' Sand Hound barked as he appeared at Xander's side, causing Jaden to jump.

"It wasn't my fault you kept talking around in circles and kept getting distracted," Xander said.

_'I'm_ _a dog. What did ya expect?_'

"I based you off a wolf, Sand, not a dog and wolves are supposed to be more intelligent than dogs."

_'Apparently, he'sss not the mossst intelligent wolf in the pack._' That came from the familiar white form of Cloud Snake who appeared, coiling around Xander's neck and startling Jaden yet again.

That time, Xander noticed. "Guys, you're freaking Jaden out," he said.

_'Hey_, _you shoulda explained it better to him when you first told him about this. It's not our fault_,' Sand Hound barked.

"I didn't know he had the same ability as me," Xander protested.

_'You're_ _twinsss. It wasss likely that he did,_' Cloud Snake hissed.

"So, uh, why haven't I seen them before?" Jaden asked, confused. "I mean, if I could see duel spirits this entire time, why didn't I start seeing them when you said you were seeing them?"

_'It_ _wasss probably becaussse you didn't believe you could or, perhapsss, you didn't believe Xander when he told you he could,_' Cloud Snake hissed.

Jaden thought about it and realized the latter of Cloud Snake's reasons made sense. While he had accepted that his brother could see this spirits, he didn't entirely believe him. Now, he realized that he was wrong. Winged Kuriboh chose that moment to appear on his shoulder.

"Wow, this is gonna take some getting used to," he said.

_'Look, it'sss the furball. Can I eat it now?_' Cloud Snake hissed.

Winged Kuriboh hid behind Jaden at that while Jaden eyed the duel spirit, wondering if she actually could eat another duel spirit. He shuddered and decided not to think about whether that could actually happen or not.

"No, Cloud, leave the Kuriboh alone," Xander said exasperatedly.

Cloud Snake hissed in disappointment.

"And yeah, it took me some time to get used to it," Xander admitted, glancing at his brother. "I didn't know you could see duel spirits until that duel with Titan, though, or else I would've told ya sooner."

"Hey, it's fine, Xan," Jaden said, because he knew that he doubted he would have believed Xander unless he had seen it for himself, especially since he didn't even think seeing and hearing duel spirits was possible.

"Come on. Let's get to work on preparing for our duels," Xander said. He paused as his stomach growled before adding, "After breakfast."

Jaden grinned. "You read my mind, big bro," he said and the two began jogging to the Slifer Dorm.

**. . .**

Later on, Chumley and Raisa nervously entered the Chancellor's office. After they had heard the conditions that Jaden, Xander and Syrus had been placed in, they decided to go to the office and tell the Chancellor the truth.

"You wanted to see me, Chumley? Raisa?" Sheppard said as the two Slifers stood in front of his desk.

The larger of the two nodded. "Yeah, look, I was at the Abandoned Dorm, too! I should be the one to duel with Jaden," Chumley said.

"No, I should, I was there, too," Raisa said.

"No, it should be me."

"Or me."

"Or me 'cause I was there, too. I should at least help Xander."

Chumley and Raisa turned to find Alexis, Nick and Sean walking into the office, the automatic door sliding closed behind them. Sheppard was just as surprised to find the two Obelisks and one Ra there.

"They were helping Raisa and me, sir. It's mostly my fault they were there," Alexis said, coming to stand on Chumley's other side.

"Yeah, they only came into the dorm when…" Nick began.

"That's so bogus," Chumley interrupted the third year Ra. "It's totally my fault. I was the one that lead them to the Abandoned Dorm, because I wanted to check out the…Abandoned Cafeteria."

"That's not true at all," Raisa protested.

"Yeah, fat chance, Chumley," Alexis said before bowing slightly. "Please, Chancellor, let me be Jaden's partner."

Sheppard smiled a little at the five of them; the twins and Syrus really did have good friends but, unfortunately, there was nothing he could do. "I'm sorry, but the decision is final," he said. "Xander will duel alone and Syrus will be Jaden's partner. I'm sure they'll do just fine."

Chumley, Raisa, Alexis, Nick and Sean exchanged glances. They weren't as confident as Sheppard was, not in Jaden and Xander's ability but, rather, how hard it would be for Syrus and how different an 8000 point duel would be for Xander.

**. . .**

"So, what did he say?" Syrus asked almost as soon as Chumley entered the room looking miserable. Jaden was seated on his bed, looking through his cards while Xander—who had yet to return to the Ra dorm—was lying on his stomach, also looking through his cards.

"Did he say yes? Please say he said yes! If I'm Jaden's partner, I'll get us both expelled," Syrus cried.

"I tried, Syrus," Chumley said. "Even Raisa tried. I even lied and said that I was the one that led you guys to the dorm."

"Well, you did lead us to its cafeteria," Jaden said, not looking up from his deck.

"So, in a way, you did lead us there," Xander added, briefly lifting his head to look at the two of them.

Syrus glanced at the younger Yuki twin. "How can you be so calm about this, Jaden?! Aren't you scared that I'm gonna get both of us kicked out?"

Jaden shook his head and looked at the spiky blue-haired Slifer. "Nah, I wouldn't have any other partner, well, except for Xan, but that's just 'cause Xan and I do practically everything together," he said.

"Overstatement," Xander said.

"Are you out of your mind?" Syrus cried at the same time.

"Look, Syrus, we're gonna go in there, duel our best and win the match. Know why?" Jaden asked.

"Uh, no, not really."

"'Cause you and I are gonna work out our skills right now," Jaden said, shuffling his deck before returning it to his case while Xander—having a good idea what his brother had in mind—also put his deck away and stood up. "Now, get your deck, 'cause we're gonna duel."

"Uh…what?"

. . .

Xander was lying on his stomach, next to Chumley, peering over the edge of the cliff when a shout of "Xander!" sounded. Rolling onto his back and sitting up, Xander watched as Raisa walked over to join him; the purple-haired girl looked confused.

"Hey, what's going on?" she asked.

"Jaden and Syrus are going to duel," Chumley said before Xander could reply.

"Really?"

"Yup. Okay, guys, remember, this is just a practice duel so go easy," Chumley called down to the two participants.

Xander snorted. "My baby bro doesn't know how to go easy," he said before wincing when a small rock connected with the back of his head. Turning and glaring at his sheepishly grinning brother, he snapped, "That was not cool, bro."

"Stop calling me baby bro then. You're only a few days older than me," Jaden retorted, still smiling.

"Besides, it's probably a good thing that Jaden doesn't know how to go easy," Alexis said, walking over to join them with Nick and Sean at her side. "Believe me, I know Dr. Crowler. The people he could get, mostly likely, are not pushovers. Both Jaden and Syrus need to be at their best because, if they're not, they'll both be expelled."

"If that's the case, then shouldn't Xander get some practice?" Raisa asked. She crossed her legs before adding, "We could duel after them, if you want that is." She looked down shyly when Xander glanced at her as he turned around, dangling his legs over the edge of the cliff.

"Why not? After I saw you crush that Obelisk, I've wanted to duel ya," he said.

"I would suggest that you duel someone you haven't seen duel yet but the only one here that you haven't seen duel is Sean," Alexis said, looking at Sean who shook his head.

"Nah, we grew up together, Alexis, so he has seen me duel before," the short Obelisk said.

"So guess it's you and me after Jaden and Syrus duel, Raisa," Xander said.

"Okay," Raisa said softly.

**. . .**

"All right, Syrus. Get your game on, buddy, and let's have some fun," Jaden said as he inserted his deck.

"Yeah, fun, sure, whatever. Might as well have some fun before we fail and get kicked out of here," Syrus said, the last part too quietly for Jaden to hear.

"Uh, what was that?"

"Oh, uh, nothing."

"Then, let's duel."

Syrus sighed. "Yeah, yeah, let's duel," he said as the two of them drew their opening hands.

**Jaden: 4000**

**Syrus: 4000**

Jaden drew his sixth card. "Here I come, Syrus," he said as he looked at his hand. _Sweet_.

"I summon Elemental Hero Avian in Attack Mode," he added and his winged green hero appeared in front of him (A: 1000/D: 1000). "And then I'll throw down a face down. Your go."

Syrus drew his sixth card. "Let's see," he murmured before he looked at the card he drew and smiled. _Oh, my Patroid has enough power to take down Avian,_ he thought.

"Hey Syrus, what's that smile for? You just get something good?" Jaden called out to him.

"Uh, yeah, I think so," Syrus said, panicking a little. "I summon Patroid in Attack Mode."

A car with big eyes and a police hat on its roof with wheels sticking out like arms and legs appeared on the field (A: 1200/D: 1200).

"Now, attack with Siren Smasher," Syrus ordered and Patroid drove toward Avian, sirens blaring.

"Not so fast, Syrus. I play my Trap, Negate Attack, stopping your attack and ending the Battle Phase," Jaden said, revealing his face down and Patroid's attack was stopped and sent back to Syrus's side of the field.

"Ah, man," Syrus mumbled. "I should've known your facedown was a Trap."

**. . .**

"Duh, Syrus walked right into that one," Chumley said, shaking his head. "Can' believe he did that."

"Syrus seems…a little distracted," Xander said softly.

"What's wrong with him?" Raisa asked, concerned.

Xander shook his head. He didn't know.

**. . .**

"Dirt is great. Don't ya think dirt is the greatest thing?" Syrus asked; he had sat down on the ground with his back to Jaden, drawing small designs in the dirt.

Jaden looked confused. "Sy, don't crack on me just yet. You just made one mistake, that's all," he said.

Syrus got to his feet and turned around. "Yeah, coming to this school," he said.

Jaden shook his head. "No, Sy, you just forgot to use Patroid's special power. Once per turn, he lets you check out one of your opponent's facedown cards. You could've seen my Trap and played something to stop it," he said.

"Yeah, I know I'm no good," Syrus said, looking away and closing his eyes. "I don't belong here."

"Whoa, hold on. I didn't mean anything like that," Jaden protested.

Syrus lowered his head as he sighed. "I know that, Jaden. I know you didn't mean it, it's just…" he trailed off.

Jaden decided not to press the issue. "You're right. I shouldn't butt in. We're opponents right now and, from now on, we should act like it," he said as he drew his next card as his turn started. "I summon Elemental Hero Sparkman in Attack Mode."

A moment later, the blue-and-gold armored hero appeared on the field, next to Avian (A: 1600/D: 1400).

"And now I'll have Sparkman attack Patroid," Jaden added and a strike of lightning flew from Sparkman's hand, hitting Patroid and destroying it.

**Jaden: 4000**

**Syrus: 3600**

"And now, Avian, attack Sy," Jaden ordered. "Windstorm Strike."

Avian flew into the air and created a small cloud of wind and dirt before sending it at Syrus, knocking him off his feet.

**Jaden: 4000**

**Syrus: 2600**

"Finally, I'll place a card facedown and that's my turn," Jaden said, slipping a card into a card slot as Avian returned to his side of the field.

Syrus sat up. "Can I crack up now? I just got nailed on both of our turns. I can't win," he protested.

"Don't talk like that, Sy," Xander called down. "I know you can do it. Anyone can win if they believe that they can."

"I mean, duh, that's the first thing they teach you in Freshman Dueling class. I should know. I took it twice," Chumley called.

The group looked at Chumley as one after that statement.

Syrus looked at his deck. "He's right. Not only am I dueling for myself here, I'm dueling for Jaden, too." He took a deep breath as he stood up. "It's time I started acting like it."

**. . .**

"Come on, Syrus, you can do this," Nick called.

Chumley nodded. "Yeah, go for it, Syrus. You just gotta believe in yourself, duh," he said.

Alexis glanced at Chumley with a small smile. "You know, you're pretty good with words of encouragement," she commented.

Chumley smiled a little, looking surprised by the comment. "Yeah, I got lots of books on self-esteem and self-confidence. For some reason, my dad keeps getting 'em for me," he admitted.

"Well, at least Syrus is listening and not playing in the dirt anymore," Raisa commented.

"The only question now is how he plays from here on out," Alexis said.

**. . .**

"All right, here goes something," Syrus said, drawing his next card before looking at his hand. _Well, I don't have anything that can take down Avian or Sparkman. Looks like I'll have to go with a different strategy._

"I play the Spell Card, Pot of Greed. This allows me to draw two new cards from my deck." He drew two cards before freezing when he saw what the cards were; Polymerization and…

_Power Bond!_

_Judging by Syrus's face, he must've drawn a sweet card,_ Jaden thought as he watched his friend stare at his cards. _Wonder what it is._

"Power Bond's like Polymerization, only better," Syrus whispered to himself. "If I summon a Machine-Type Fusion monster with this card, its Attack Points are doubled." His shoulders slumped as he closed his eyes. "Oh well, I'm not good enough to play this card, at least according to my brother."

**. . .**

**Flashback**

_A younger Syrus was facing off against a big-sized bully who only had one face-down card on his side of the field while Syrus's field was empty._

_**Syrus: 1600**_

_**Bully: 1900**_

_"All right, you're going down," Syrus said__,__drawing a card and smiled when he saw what it was._

_Awesome, Power Bond! The card my brother gave me. I'll win for sure now, he thought__,__looking at the bully and smiling._

_"Quit your stalling, you little pip-squeak. You're gonna lose and you know it, so let's just get it over with," the bully barked._

_"Yeah, well, that's what you think," Syrus said confidently. "This duel is mine."_

_"Yeah right," the bully retorted. "The only thing that's gonna be yours is a serious butt-kicking."_

_Syrus laughed. "Sorry, but I'm not scared of your nasty threats. Do you hear that? I'm not afraid of you anymore. You know why?" He raised his card, getting ready to play it. "'Cause I'm the one that's gonna take you down."_

_"Stop!" a sudden voice shouted._

_Syrus stopped and fell to the ground in surprise. He sat up and looked behind him. "Hey, who said that?"_

_A taller and older boy in a blue school uniform with dark-blue hair walked toward them; it was a younger version of his older brother._

_"Zane?" Syrus echoed._

_Zane didn't even acknowledge him as he walked over to the bully. "This duel never happened, got it? Just take this card and go," he said__,__holding out a card._

_The book looked at the card and laughed. "Nice card. You got yourself a deal," he said__,__taking the card from Zane and walking away, stuffing it into his pocket._

_"What are you doing, Zane?" Syrus protested as he got to his feet. "I was about to win the duel with the card you gave me."_

_Zane didn't even turn to face him. "No__,__you weren't, Syrus. And if I had known you were going to misplay it, I never would've given it to you in the first place," he snapped._

_"Misplay? What are you talking about? I wasn't gonna misplay it."_

_"Yes__,__you were," Zane said before holding out a card for Syrus to see. "This is the facedown card that kid had on the field."_

_Syrus peered at the card and recognized it. "Spellbinding Circle?"_

_"That's right. This is a very powerful Trap, Syrus. When this Trap is sprung, the monster attacking is forced to stop its attack and it can't change its battle position," Zane said. "So you would've attacked using a monster you summoned with Power Bond, and its Attack Points would've doubled. But Spellbinding Circle would've prevented you from attacking with it and you would've taken a lot of damage to your Life Points at the end of your turn for using Power Bond."_

_He was right. Syrus knew it; he sniffed and lowered his head, tears welling up in his eyes._

_"You weren't thinking, Syrus. You didn't take into account the facedown card and you didn't take into account Power Bond's adverse effect. Sure, you may know how to use Power Bond, but there's a lot more to dueling than just that."_

**End Flashback**

**. . .**

"Just holding this card again gives me the chills," Syrus muttered as he continued to look at the card. "And what did he mean that just using it wasn't enough?"

"Hey. You all right over there, Sy?" Jaden called out to him.

Snapping out of his trance, Syrus shook his head to clear his thoughts and glanced at Jaden. "Uh, I'm fine," he said. "I play this Spell Card, Polymerization. Now, I'll use it to fuse the Gyroid and the Steamroid in my hand to create Steam Gyroid."

A vortex appeared and a toy helicopter as well as a toy train with eyes appeared before they were sucked into the vortex. A moment later, a train with a cartoonish face appeared on the field with helicopter fans on its back (A: 2200/D: 1800).

"All right, Steam Gyroid, it's time to go loco-motive. Attack with Train Twister," Syrus ordered.

Steam Gyroid's fans rotated rapidly, creating a tornado that rose high before curving around and slamming into Avian before Steam Gyroid soared through the tornado to crash into Avian,shattering him.

**Jaden: 2800**

**Syrus: 2600**

"Gotcha. Had enough, Jaden?" Syrus said, smiling as he signaled the end of his turn.

Jaden laughed. "Have I had enough? No way, Sy. You know the old saying, 'no pain, no gain' and with what I have planned, you're gonna get a lot," he said, drawing a card. "You and I aren't just friends anymore, Syrus. We're rivals and I have the cards to treat you like one."

He retrieved a few cards from his hand before adding, "Now, brace yourself. I play the Spell Card Polymerization. Elemental Hero Sparkman and Elemental Hero Clayman, unite as one," he ordered as his large giant stone-gray hero appeared on the field. He and Sparkman fused together, creating a giant in yellow armor with a sphere of crackling electricity in its chest (A: 2400/D: 1500).

"Here he comes, the Elemental Hero Thunder Giant," Jaden said.

**. . .**

"This is bad for Syrus," Alexis said.

Chumley looked at her. "C'mon, it's just another monster," he said.

"No, it's not," Xander said.

Sean nodded in agreement. "Thunder Giant can automatically destroy one monster on the turn he's summoned, if the monster's he's targeting original Attack Points are less than or equal to his own," he said.

"Really?" Chumley echoed, eyes wide. "Then I guess practice is getting out early for Syrus."

Xander nodded slowly. _Poor Syrus, _he thought. _I wonder if that card he got that caused him to freeze would have changed the outcome of this duel._

**. . .**

"Okay, Thunder Giant, take out Steam Gyroid," Jaden ordered after discarding a card as he activated his giant's special ability.

Thunder Giant directed a shower of small bright needles to rain down on Steam Gyroid, destroying it.

Syrus lowered his arm. "Ah, man, that leaves me defenseless," he said as the smoke cleared.

"Yeah, it does," Jaden said. "I then summon Elemental Hero Burstinatrix in Attack Mode." The female heroine in the red bodysuit appeared on the field (A: 1200/D: 800).

"Thunder Giant, attack with Voltic Thunder," Jaden ordered and Syrus screamed as electricity from Thunder Giant went through him, knocking him to his knees.

**Jaden: 2800**

**Syrus: 200**

"Now, Burstinatrix, attack with Flare Storm," Jaden added and the red heroine tossed a large red fireball at Syrus, who backed away, and knocked out the rest of his Life Points.

**Jaden: 2800 WINNER**

**Syrus: 0**

"That's game," Jaden said, giving his friend the two finger salute. "Pretty sweet duel, Syrus."

Syrus sat up from where he had fallen as the taller Slifer walked over to join him. "I don't know, Jaden. I didn't put up a good enough fight," he said.

"What are you talking about?" Jaden asked, stopping. "Sure, I was able to pull it through at the end, but you pulled off some pretty sweet moves there. Although, I am wondering about something, what was that card you pulled? The one you didn't play?"

Before Syrus could stop him, Jaden bent down and picked up the card before looking at it.

"Power Bond?" he said. "This is a sweet card, Syrus. Why didn't you play it? If you did, your Steam Gyroid's attack would've doubled. You would've had one tough monster." He paused,looking down at his friend before smiling and adding, "On second thought, I think it was cool for me that you didn't play it."

"You don't understand," Syrus said, standing up and snatching the card out of Jaden's hand. "My brother says I'm not good enough to play it and it's obvious that he's right."

"Syrus…" Jaden began.

"It's also obvious that you won't be able to win the tag-duel with me as your partner," Syrus added before running down the beach.

"Hey, wait! Syrus!"

"Syrus!" Chumley yelled, dashing off after Syrus.

**. . .**

Xander joined his brother, who was looking out over the water with Alexis and the others behind him.

"I guess practice doesn't make perfect, at least not with Syrus, it doesn't," Alexis said.

Jaden frowned. "I don't get it. Syrus is a cool guy but he doesn't see what I see. He has a problem with believing in himself and he had this awesome Spell Card but didn't play it because of his brother telling him not to."

"What kind of brother does that?" Raisa asked.

"Not a good one, that's for sure. I'd never tell Jaden he couldn't play a card," Xander said.

Alexis, however, was looking at him with wide eyes.

Jaden noticed. "What is it, Alexis?" he asked. "Did I say something?"

She nodded. "Yeah, that brother of his does go to this school. You've probably heard of him too," she said.

"I can't say that I have," Raisa said.

Sean frowned. "Wait, you don't mean…" he began.

"He's Syrus's brother?" Nick echoed.

"Am I the only one who has no idea who you're talking about?" Xander asked.

"Nope, I don't know either," Raisa admitted.

"Me neither. Who are you talking about?" Jaden asked.

Alexis looked at them. "Hello? Third-Year Obelisk student and the best duelist in the school? He's the Kaiser, the big man on campus. Zane! He's as good as his reputation, maybe even better."

Xander snorted. "Sounds to me like he's not a very good big brother," he said.

Jaden nodded in agreement. "I wonder what happened to the two of them," he said.

"Jaden, don't pry," Alexis warned him. "It's their problem. Don't get involved."

Jaden grinned, punching an open palm. "Don't worry. I'm not gonna pry, Alexis. I'm gonna duel." He looked at his brother, the girls, Nick and Sean. "I'm gonna duel him and find out what's going on."

"Jaden, you're not listening. No one duels Zane," Alexis protested.

Xander tilted his head to the side. "Why not?" he asked curiously.

Before Alexis could reply, Jaden said, "People duel Zane if their tag-team partner isn't playing up to snuff because of him. I wanna see how I stack up against this guy anyway."

_Well, if he's not going to listen to me,_ Alexis thought, shaking her head. "All right, good luck then, Jaden."

"Get ready and watch yourself, Zane. I'm coming for ya," Jaden declared and ran off.

Xander watched him go. _Good luck, bro. I hope you can knock some sense into this Zane's head,_ he thought.

"Well, while Jaden's off trying to duel Zane, why don't we get to yours and Raisa's duel?" Sean suggested.

"Oh yeah, forgot about that," Xander said sheepishly before he glanced at Raisa. "Ready to get your game on, Raisa?"

Raisa smiled before nodding. "I'm ready," she said. They walked the respective distances away before activating their duel disks and drawing their starting hands.

"Duel!"

**Xander: 4000**

**Raisa: 4000**

"You can start, Raisa," Xander said.

Raisa nodded, drawing her sixth card. "All right, I'll start with this. I summon Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner to my field in Attack Mode," she said, placing the card on her duel disk and a dark-skinned woman with blonde hair in a white dress with green trimming and a white scarf around her neck appeared on the field (A: 1000/D: 1000).

"Then, I'll place two cards face down and end my turn and, since it's my End Phase, I have to send the top three cards of my deck to my Graveyard," Raisa said before she removed the three cards and put them into her Graveyard slot.

"All right, my draw," Xander said, drawing a card before glancing at it and adding it to his hand. "And I'll start by summoning Star Force Shadow Apprentice to my field in Attack Mode."

The black-clad and silver haired woman appeared on the field, holding her dagger at the ready (A: 1600/D: 1000).

"Go, Shadow Apprentice, attack Lumina with Shadow Slice," Xander ordered.

"I activate my Trap Card, Negate Attack to stop the attack and end the Battle Phase," Raisa said, revealing the facedown card and Shadow Apprentice's attack was stopped.

"Well, darn," Xander said. "I place two cards face down and end my turn."

"And it's my turn," Raisa said, drawing a card. "And I summon Jain, Lightsworn Paladin to my field in Attack Mode."

The silver-haired female warrior in the silver and gold armor appeared on the field (A: 1800/D: 1200).

"Now, Jain, attack his Shadow Apprentice with Light Strike Slash. Oh, and when she attacks a monster, she gains 300 points," Raisa said.

"And I activate my Trap, Waboku, to prevent my monster from being destroyed and prevent me from taking battle damage," Xander said, revealing the Trap.

Raisa smiled. "And I activate my Trap, Royal Decree, now all Trap Cards, except for this one, are negated," she said, also revealing the card and Xander grimaced before wincing as Jain's slash sliced through Shadow Apprentice and destroyed her.

**Xander: 3500**

**Raisa: 4000**

"And now, Lumina, attack Xander directly. Light blast," Raisa ordered and Xander winced as the ball of blue light struck him, sending him skidding backwards.

**Xander: 2500**

**Raisa: 4000**

"And I'll end my turn with that, which means I have to send the top five cards of my deck to my Graveyard per Jain and Lumina's effects," Raisa said, removing the five cards and put them into her Graveyard slot.

"Raisa already has first blood," Sean commented.

"Let's see what Xander has planned. I'm hoping to see more of his cards," Alexis admitted.

"Same here," Nick said.

"And it's my turn," Xander said, drawing a card. "And I play Monster Reborn to bring back Shadow Apprentice in Defense Mode."

The silver-haired woman, looking irritated, reappeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1000).

_'Argh, I hate getting destroyed,_' Apprentice protested.

"And because a Star Force monster is on my field, I'm allowed to Special Summon my Star Force Fire Bird to my field in Defense Mode," Xander added, not responding to Shadow Apprentice's words, as a beautiful white bird surrounded by red flames appeared on the field (A: 2100/D: 1600).

"Next, I sacrifice Shadow Apprentice to Set this monster in face down Defense Mode," Xander added and Shadow Apprentice faded to be replaced by a horizontal face down card.

Raisa raised an eyebrow at that. _Does this mean that monster has a Special Ability?_ She wondered silently.

"Now, Star Force Fire Bird, attack her Lumina with Fire Fall," Xander ordered and Raisa shielded her face with her duel disk as the bird flew into the air and a wave of fire flew from her wings to strike at Lumina, destroying her.

**Xander: 2500**

**Raisa: 2900**

"I'll end my turn with that," Xander said.

Raisa lowered her arm before drawing a card. "Okay, first, I'm activating the Spell Card, Charge of the Light Brigade. With this, I send the top three cards of my deck to my Graveyard and then I can add a Level 4 or lower Lightsworn monster from my deck to my hand."

She put three cards into her Graveyard slot before adding another card from her deck.

She smiled before adding, "And one of the three cards that I sent to the Graveyard was my Wulf, Lightsworn Beast. When he's sent to the Graveyard from my deck, I can Special Summon him to my field."

A moment later, a large gray wolf-like beast with glowing claws on one paw and an axe being carried in the other appeared on the field with a roar (A: 2100/D: 300).

Raisa eyed the facedown monster. _What could it be? _She thought. With Xander and his deck using an archetype that was only recently released, it was difficult to figure out what monster Xander had Tribute-summoned.

_It must have a flip effect. Otherwise, why did he summon it face down?_ Raisa thought. _And it might have high Defense Points. I don't think I should risk it._

"I Set this monster and end my turn, which means Jain's effect causes me to send two more cards to my Graveyard," Raisa said, slipping two cards into her Graveyard slot.

"My turn," Xander said, drawing a card. "And I'll start by Flip-Summoning my Star Force Dark Assassin to the field." The card he had set on his last turn flipped up to reveal a silver robot with a triangular head carrying twin blasters (A: 2000/D: 2300).

_Now I'm glad I didn't attack it,_ Raisa thought, seeing the Defense Points.

"Cool, a new one," Sean said.

Xander smiled. "And with a sweet flip effect, too," he said. "When he's flipped, he's allowed to remove one LIGHT-attribute monster on the field from play."

Raisa gasped.

"That'll take out Raisa's most powerful current monster," Sean said, surprised.

"Go, take out her Wulf. Covert Discharge," Xander said and Dark Assassin pointed his blasters at Wulf.

_'Eat_ _blaster bolts, meatbag!_' Dark Assassin declared, firing and Wulf vanished almost as soon as the blaster bolts hit it.

Xander sighed. He knew he shouldn't have based Dark Assassin on HK-47. "That was only his effect. Now, he can attack Jain. Go, Double Energy Blast," he ordered and Dark Assassin, happily, fired two blaster bolts at Jain, destroying her.

**Xander: 2500**

**Raisa: 2700**

"And now, Fire Bird, attack Raisa's facedown monster," Xander ordered and Fire Bird flew into the air before unleashing a wave of fire that slammed into the card, causing it to flip and reveal a white wolf with red eyes before it was destroyed.

Raisa lowered her duel disk before she said, "Since Ryko was flipped before being destroyed, his effect activates; now I can target one card on your field and destroy it and I choose your Fire Bird. Though now I also have to send the top three cards of my deck to my Graveyard."

_Dang. And since she was destroyed by an effect, I can't bring her back next turn,_ Xander thought, watching as his Fire Bird was destroyed and Raisa put three cards into her Graveyard.

"I'll end my turn now," he said.

"My turn," Raisa said, drawing a card. "And I play my own Monster Reborn to bring back Jain, though she won't stay here for long. Now, I sacrifice her to summon my Celestia, Lightsworn Angel."

Jain appeared momentarily only to vanish to be replaced by the beautiful blue-haired winged angel in gold and silver armor (A: 2300/D: 200).

"Oh boy," Xander murmured.

"Xander's in trouble now," Alexis said, eyes widening.

"And now, by discarding the top four cards of my deck to my Graveyard, I can target up to two of your cards and destroy them. Since you only have one, I'll destroy Dark Assassin," Raisa added, slipping four of her cards into her Graveyard and Celestia waved the staff she was wielding to destroy Dark Assassin.

"Now, Celestia, attack Xander directly, Celestial Strike," Raisa ordered and Xander braced himself as the beam of light from Celestia's wand struck him and sent him to the ground.

**Xander: 200**

**Raisa: 2700**

"Ouch, yeah, Xander's in trouble," Sean said, wincing.

"Are you okay?" Raisa called.

Xander got to his feet. "Yeah, I'm fine. Sweet move," he said.

Raisa smiled. "I end my turn," she said.

"My turn," Xander said, drawing a card. "And I'll start by activating Spellbook Inside the Pot so that we can each draw three cards."

The two of them drew.

"Next, I summon Star Force Ice Phoenix in Defense Mode," he said and his beautiful blue-white bird with icicles in her feathers appeared on the field (A: 1700/D: 1500). "Then, I activate the Spell Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Royal Decree," Xander added and the small tornado appeared before destroying Raisa's Continuous Trap. "I end my turn."

"All right, my draw," Raisa said, drawing a card and grimacing because she was starting to run low on cards. "Now, Celestia, attack Ice Phoenix with Celestial Strike and end the duel."

"Not so fast. I activate my Trap, Mirror Force," Xander declared.

Raisa gasped as Celestia's attack backfired and she was destroyed.

"That explains why he destroyed Royal Decree last turn," Nick mused.

Raisa smacked her forehead. _Dang it, I should've seen that coming,_ she thought.

"Hey, you made a mistake, Raisa. It's fine," Xander assured the girl.

Raisa lowered her hand. _I think it might be because I've never been this low on cards before in a duel,_ she thought. "I end my turn," she said.

Xander drew a card. "I summon my Star Force Weapons Master to my field in Attack Mode," he said and his robotic humanoid with the large rifle in his hand and the energy field around him appeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 1500).

"And I'm switching Ice Phoenix into Attack Mode as well," Xander added. "Now, go Weapons Master, attack Raisa directly, Energy Discharge."

Raisa shielded her face as Weapons Master fired at her, the energy blasts hitting her duel disk.

**Xander: 200**

**Raisa: 1100**

"Ice Phoenix, attack with Icicle Storm and end the duel," Xander ordered and Ice Phoenix nodded her head before she flew into the air and unleashed a storm of icicles from her feathers into Raisa, knocking her down and knocking out the rest of her Life Points.

**Xander: 200 WINNER**

**Raisa: 0**

"A come from behind win? Not bad," Nick commented.

"It was close, though," Sean said. "If Raisa had taken into account Xander's facedown, she might have won."

"Sweet duel, Raisa," Xander said, walking over to the purple-haired girl and holding out a hand to her. She took it and he pulled her to her feet.

"Thanks," she said.

"You would've won, you know, if you had noticed my face down," Xander commented.

"Yeah, I guess I just got frustrated 'cause I've never gotten that low on cards in a duel before and I guess I just wanted to end the duel before I decked out. So, rematch sometime?"

"You're on. But, right now, I'm going to get some lunch," Xander said before waving to the group and walking away, heading back to the Ra Dorm.

**. . .**

_Suffocating darkness pressed against him on all sides. The air was filled with smoke, making it difficult to breathe and yet there were no flames in sight. Malicious laughter echoed around him though there was no way of knowing from where the laughter was coming. It almost seemed as if it was all around him but there were no signs of life anywhere._

_"Your past and your present will collide. It is only a matter of time," the voice—that same sinister, dark, malicious and mischievous voice—whispered and silver eyes once again peered out of the darkness at him; the only source of light seemed to come from within those eyes._

_"I don't know what you mean!" Xander shouted._

_"You will, Xander Yuki, you will," the voice whispered and then a chilling laugh sounded…_

'_Xander!_'

With a yelp, Xander jumped up and promptly fell off his bed with a _thud_, much to the amusement of the duel spirits who woke him up. Growling, Xander lifted his head and glared at them.

"All right. Which one of ya woke me up?" he asked.

Ice Phoenix and Sand Hound pointed their wing and snout respectively towards Sentinel who smiled, not at all ashamed. _'You_ _were tossing and turning in your sleep, for one, and if you sleep anymore then you won't be able to sleep tonight, for another,_' Sentinel said.

"I barely sleep at night anyway," Xander muttered, sitting down on his bed with a yawn before he reached for his deck and began going through it.

_'Have_ _you talked to your brother about these nightmares?_' Sand Hound barked, curling up at the other end of the bed.

"I don't want to worry him," Xander said.

_'You_ _should talk to someone about 'em, Xander. It might help,_' Sentinel said. '_And Jaden was there for you when those nightmares first appeared._'

"I know, but…" Xander sighed. "I just don't want him to worry. I can handle them."

_'Famous_ _last words_,' Ice Phoenix trilled and Xander didn't reply to that as he focused his attention on his deck.

**. . .**

**A/n what do you think?**

**Blaze: well, that was chapter 8. I hope that you liked it**

**Darth: I did**

**Blaze: I liked that I included a KOTOR reference**

**Darth: you did?**

**Blaze: anyone who is a KOTOR fan will know it when they read it. Anyway, I also want to tell everyone that I am going to be adding something to Star Force Shadow Dragon's second effect, because **_**IfTimeWasStill**_** has a point; it's too overpowered.**

**Darth: and she's also going to be including brand new Star Force monsters for Xander's expulsion duel**

**Blaze: and here are the stats for the two new cards introduced this chapter.**

_Star Force Fire Bird_

LIGHT

6

Winged beast-effect

ATK: 2100

DEF: 1600

While you control a face-up "Star Force" monster, you can Special Summon this card from your hand. When this card is sent to the Graveyard by battle, you can pay 500 Life Points to Special Summon it during your next Standby Phase.

_Star Force Dark Assassin_

DARK  
5

Machine-effect

ATK: 2000

DEF: 2300

FLIP: You can select and remove one LIGHT monster from play (the selected monster cannot activate its effect during this time

**Blaze: in the next chapter, it will be mostly canon duels; Jaden versus Zane and Chumley versus Mr. Huffington but with some development of Xander's character including some flashbacks and more on his rather confusing nightmares (I think I may have already said this before but I will say it again, remember Xander's nightmares even though they will not play a big role until Season 2)**

**Darth: so please review and Blaze will post chapter 9 as soon as she possibly can.**


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